The upstart Golden Gophers proved a strong draw last weekend.
Saturday’s Penn State-Minnesota college football game averaged a 4.3 rating and 6.74 million viewers on ABC, marking the highest rated and second-most watched Big Ten game this season. Only Michigan’s win over Notre Dame averaged a larger audience (6.75M).
The Golden Gophers’ win, which peaked with 8.75 million viewers from 3-3:15 PM ET, also ranks second among Noon ET games this season, trailing only Oklahoma-Texas on FOX last month (4.5, 7.32M).
Overall, it ranks as the ninth-most watched game this season and is tied as the fifth-highest rated.
Ratings increased 187% and viewership 197% from last year (Wisconsin-Penn State: 1.5, 2.27M) and 115% and 125% respectively from regional action in 2017 (2.0, 3.00M).
Minneapolis led all markets with a 19.5 rating, followed by Pittsburgh (12.8). Columbus, Ohio, was the top neutral market (9.2), with top-ten market Philadelphia ranking fourth (8.7) and Greenville, NC, rounding out the top five (8.2).
Later Saturday, Clemson-NC State drew a 1.6 (-33%) and 2.71 million (-30%) on ABC’s Saturday Night Football, marking the network’s least-watched primetime game since UCLA-Arizona in 2015 (2.39M).
Rounding out its tripleheader, ABC scored a 1.1 (-54%) and 1.63 million (-58%) for USC-Arizona State, which aired opposite LSU-Alabama on CBS. The 1.1 tied the network’s season-low.
Shifting to cable, ratings and viewership dropped double-digits for all five week ten games on ESPN, marking the network’s second-straight week of across-the-board declines.
On Saturday, Missouri-Georgia declined 45% in ratings (to 1.2) and 46% in viewership (to 2.17M); Vanderbilt-Florida 42% (to 0.75) and 41% (to 1.23M); Wyoming-Boise State 30% (to 0.7) and 26% (to 1.18M); and Kansas State-Texas 25% (to 0.6) and 20% (to 1.05M).
Rounding out the declines, last Thursday’s Temple-USF game fell 38% (to 0.31) and 42% (to 431K).
ESPN2 topped out at a 0.5 (-18%) and 787,000 (-26%) for UCF-Tulsa last Friday night. Figures were available for only one ESPNU game, Liberty-BYU last Saturday night.
[Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 11.12, ESPN PR 11.12]
