![Former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow talks on set for SEC Nation before an NCAA college football matchup between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Florida Gators Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://www.sportsmediawatch.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/USATSI_24654241-scaled-e1731437628108.jpg)
The “SEC on ABC” has been the ratings story of the college football season, sweeping all three of the main telecast windows this past weekend.
Alabama-LSU averaged 7.90 million viewers on the latest edition of ABC’s Saturday Night Football, marking the top college football audience of the weekend. Viewership actually declined from last year’s matchup of the rivals on CBS, which drew 8.8 million on a Nielsen-only basis, and was not much higher than the 2022 meeting — which drew a Nielsen-only audience of 7.6 million despite airing on cable (ESPN).
The Tide’s win, which peaked with 9.7 million viewers, ranks among the ten most-watched games this season. ABC has aired 12 of the top 15.
ABC’s “Saturday Night Football” — which is now an “SEC on ABC” window every week — has won its primetime window in nine of 11 weeks this season, the exceptions being Colorado-Nebraska on NBC in week two and Ohio State-Oregon on NBC two weeks ago.
Earlier in the day, ABC drew 7.07 million for Mississippi’s upset of Georgia (7.4 million including Adobe Analytics), cruising past Miami-Florida State in the same window last year (4.1M on a Nielsen-only basis). As with the primetime window, the “SEC on ABC” has won the 3:30 PM ET slot in nine of 11 weeks this season, the exceptions being Northern Illinois’ upset of Notre Dame on NBC in week two and USC-Michigan on CBS in week four.
Rounding out the early game slate, Texas’ rout of Florida drew 3.7 million (3.9M including Adobe), marking the largest Noon ET audience of the weekend. ABC has now won the Noon ET window — which in recent years has been identified with the FOX “Big Noon Saturday” window — in five of the past seven weeks. ABC also owns six of the ten largest Noon ET audiences this season.
Texas-Florida aired in a competitive window that also included Miami’s upset loss to Georgia Tech, which drew 3.46 million on ESPN — the most-watched college football game on cable since week one.
ESPN also drew 2.07 million for the BYU-Utah rivalry game, trailing only Colorado’s games against Kansas State and Cincinnati as the most-watched late night game all season.
In other action, ESPN drew 1.60 million for Mississippi State-Tennessee and 1.44 million for Clemson-Virginia Tech.
