Viewership has picked up a bit with the return of the SEC, but this anomalous college football season continues to lag in the ratings.
Last Saturday’s Texas A&M-Alabama college football game averaged a 2.75 rating and 4.76 million viewers on CBS, marking the highest rated and most-watched game of the season thus far. The previous highs were set by the same SEC on CBS window a week earlier (Mississippi State-LSU: 2.5, 4.44M).
Later in the day, Auburn-Georgia averaged a 2.2 and 4.22 million on ESPN — easily the highest rated and most-watched game on cable this season and #4 overall. In just two weeks of play, the SEC has already delivered three of the season’s top four audiences.
It bears noting that this year’s top audiences would be further down the list in a normal year. The season-high audience for Texas A&M-Alabama would have ranked tenth at the comparable point of last season.
With only three of the “Power 5” conferences in action thus far and minimal non-conference play, there have been fewer of the marquee games that would usually anchor the early season schedule. Through five weeks last season, eight games had already topped the five million mark — seven were non-conference games (led by Notre Dame-Georgia at 9.21 million) and the other was a Big Ten game (Ohio State-Nebraska at 6.14 million).
This year’s weaker schedule has resulted in a wave of declines to start the season. Thus far, viewership has fallen for 36 of the 48 windows that can be compared to last season.* Texas A&M-Alabama and Auburn-Georgia were noted exceptions, the former increasing 27% in ratings and 33% in viewership (vs. Mississippi-Alabama: 2.2, 3.59M) and the latter 83% and 112% (vs. Mississippi State-Auburn: 1.2, 1.99M).
Last week’s other games did not fare as well. ABC’s Saturday Night Football (Oklahoma-Iowa State: 2.1, 3.71M) sank 40% in ratings and viewership from last year’s previously-noted Ohio State-Nebraska game. ABC also saw steep declines for North Carolina-Boston College (1.2, -57%; 1.98M, -55%) and Baylor-West Virginia (1.1, -45%; 1.79M, -41%).
FOX held up better with a 1.6 and 2.70 million for TCU-Texas, down 16% in ratings and just 4% in viewership from Texas Tech-Oklahoma last year (1.9, 2.81M). ESPN had only slight declines for its competing Noon ET window, South Carolina-Florida (1.5, -6%; 2.52M, -2%).
Beyond the declines, which are to be expected under the circumstances (and are widespread throughout the industry), is the relative softness of the numbers. Across the broadcast networks and the ESPN flagship, 28 of 35 windows have cracked the million viewer mark. Through five weeks last year, that number was 62 of 65. Even accounting for the sharp reduction in telecasts, that is a drop from 95% of telecasts last season to four in five this time around.
For the full list of numbers thus far, see the college football ratings page.
* All CFB (and NFL) comparisons on SMW are to the corresponding week of last season, which was one week earlier on the calendar.
[Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 10.6]
