Though down from recent years, the Michigan/Ohio State rivalry was a customarily large draw on ABC.
Last Saturday’s Michigan/Ohio State college football game drew a 4.9 final rating and 8.2 million viewers on ABC, down 16% in ratings and 13% in viewership from both last year and 2012 (5.8, 9.5M). The Buckeyes’ win ranks as the lowest rated and least-viewed edition of the rivalry game since 2010 (4.0, 6.9M).
Despite the four-year low, Michigan/Ohio State was the top non-Iron Bowl game of the weekend, easily topping Florida/Florida State on ESPN (3.5, 6.0M). It also earned the season’s top Big Ten audience and sixth-largest audience overall.
Regional action later in the afternoon drew a 2.4 and 4.0 million, up 9% in ratings and 13% in viewership from Georgia/Georgia Tech last year (2.2, 3.5M).
Rounding out Saturday coverage, Oregon/Oregon State drew a mere 1.9 and 3.3 million in primetime — down 10% in ratings and 4% in viewership from USC/UCLA last year (2.1, 3.5M). The Ducks’ blowout win was no match for the Iron Bowl, which drew a 7.4 and 13.5 million on ESPN.
Last Friday, ABC’s Stanford/UCLA game drew a 1.9 and 2.9 million — up 36% and 38%, respectively, from Miami/Pittsburgh last year (1.4, 2.1M). Final numbers were not immediately available for Nebraska/Iowa earlier in the day.
(Wknd. numbers from ESPN, Sports Business Daily)
