Ratings and viewership plunged for the 2011 Gator Bowl, which moved from broadcast network CBS to cable network ESPN2.
Mississippi State’s win over Michigan earned a 1.7 U.S. rating and 2.827 million viewers on ESPN2 New Year’s Day, down 56% in ratings and viewership from last (FSU/WVU: 3.9, 6.408 mil, CBS), and down 59% and 57%, respectively, from 2009 (NEB/CLEM: 4.1, 6.603 mil, CBS).
This marks the lowest rated Gator Bowl since at least 1995 (ratings prior to 1996 were not available), and the least viewed since at least 2002 (viewership prior to 2001 was not available).
From 1996-2010, the Gator Bowl never drew less than a 2.0 rating, topping a 3.0 in fourteen of those fifteen years.
The Gator Bowl was more than doubled by the Capital One Bowl on ESPN (ALA/MSU: 3.7, 6.045 mil). The Gator and Capital One Bowls combined drew a smaller audience than the Outback Bowl on ABC (UF/PSU: 7.1, 12.445 mil).
