With the nation’s #2 team on upset alert, ESPN led the week two college football ratings race.
Last Saturday’s Clemson-Texas A&M college football game had a 2.6 rating and 4.49 million viewers on ESPN, up 44% in ratings and 33% in viewership from last year (Auburn-Clemson: 1.8, 3.36M) and up 73% and 82% respectively from 2016 (Arkansas-TCU: 1.5, 2.47M).
The Tigers’ close win was the highest rated and most-watched college football game of the weekend, topping second-place Georgia-South Carolina on CBS (2.3, 3.75M).
Later in the night, Michigan State-Arizona State had a 1.5 (+95%) and 2.30 million (+82%).
ESPN opened its Saturday coverage with a 1.1 (-27%) and 1.80 million (-20%) for Mississippi State-Kansas State.
Over on ESPN2, Arkansas State-Alabama scored a 1.0 and 1.66 million Saturday afternoon — down 17% in ratings and 20% in viewership from last year (Fresno State-Alabama: 1.2, 2.07M) and down 29% and 33% respectively from 2016 (Western Kentucky-Alabama: 1.4, 2.47M).
As one would expect given Alabama’s presence, it was still ESPN2’s top college football telecast of the young season (seven windows).
ESPN2 also drew a 0.5 (+11%) and 858,000 (+7%) For Southeast Louisiana-LSU later in the night and a 0.7 (+17%) and 1.08 million (+11%) for TCU-SMU on Friday.
Rounding out the ESPN games, ESPNU topped out at 337,000 for Duke-Northwestern — up 109% from the same matchup last year (161K) but down 15% from N.C. State-ECU in 2016 (397K). ESPN’s College Gameday had 1.67 million, up 5%.
The full list of week two college football ratings is available here.
[Numbers from ESPN PR 9.12, Nielsen via ShowBuzz Daily 9.11]
