ACC vs Big 12 Football TV Ratings Through Week 7

[UConnJim]

Through the first 7 weeks of the football season, Big 12 football TV ratings (from rated channels) have beaten ACC football ratings in 5 out of 7 weeks. I only counted games in which the home team was either an ACC school or a Big 12 school even if they were out of conference games as these are the games included in each conference's media package. ACCN games are not included as they are not rated, but the value of the ACCN comes from subscriptions. I will point out that FSU is down this year and Colorado has Coach Prime which impacts this year's ratings. For example, Miami @ USF had 1.25 million viewers (ESPN) and Cal @ FSU had 0.887 million viewers (ESPN2) in the same time slot. Also, the Big 12 benefits by having games on both FOX and ESPN/ABC.

Week 0/1: ACC: 11.002 million, Big 12: 9.443 million
Week 2: ACC: 4.642 million, Big 12: 6.138 million
Week 3: ACC: 4.137 million, Big 12: 4.166 million
Week 4: ACC: 5.311 million, Big 12: 9.035 million
Week 5: ACC: 4.781 million, Big 12: 8.174 million
Week 6: ACC: 5.831 million, Big 12: 4.821 million
Week 7: ACC: 2.580 million, Big 12: 4.642 million

Total viewers: Big 12: 48.857 million viewers, ACC: 38.284 million viewers.

This is a small sample size, but it clearly shows the Big 12 is holding it's own or doing better versus the ACC.

And, in men's college basketball preseason poll, the Big 12 has 6 ranked schools #1, #4, #5, #8, #10, and #20 vs the ACC has 2 ranked schools, #7 and #9. So, I would assume the Big 12's TV ratings should be as good, but probably better than the ACC's.

 

[Rufus]

At least the ACC can hang their hat on basketball................

Oh wait, they just went 2-14 in the ACC/SEC Challenge. Nevermind.

 

[Waquoit]

Oh wait, they just went 2-14 in the ACC/SEC Challenge. Nevermind.

But Duke won, that's all that matters to them.

 

[RedRabbit84]

Are you guys hyping a conference you're not even a part of? And only have rumors of joining? C'mon now, guys...

 

[CL82]

Are you guys hyping a conference you're not even a part of? And only have rumors of joining? C'mon now, guys...

Conspiracy Kitty says:
Wait... there are rumors?! What have you heard?!

 

[uconnric]

Are you guys hyping a conference you're not even a part of? And only have rumors of joining? C'mon now, guys...

Showing which conference has more tv eyeballs. The ACC has lost a lot of luster, especially with FSU being way down. Syracuse beating Miami was good for Syracuse but bad for the ACC also. They have also lost a lot in basketball reputation with the exception of Duke.

 

[UConnJim]

At least the ACC can hang their hat on basketball................

Oh wait, they just went 2-14 in the ACC/SEC Challenge. Nevermind.

ACC basketball has been hit hard by coaching retirements: Coach K, Boeheim, Brey, Bennet, and Larranaga and Hamilton are 75+ and they really haven't been replaced. Who are the top 3 coaches in the ACC now?

 

[AZHuskiePop]

ACC basketball has been hit hard by coaching retirements: Coach K, Boeheim, Brey, Bennet, and Larranaga and Hamilton are 75+ and they really haven't been replaced. Who are the top 3 coaches in the ACC now?

In college sports the coaches ability to recruit is 75% of the game . Hiring a guy with no established reputation makes that aspect more difficult even if the replacement is an equally good or even slightly better game coach. Overachievement is the.best way to establish a reputation.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

In college sports the coaches ability to recruit is 75% of the game . Hiring a guy with no established reputation makes that aspect more difficult even if the replacement is an equally good or even slightly better game coach. Overachievement is the.best way to establish a reputation.

Have you heard of NIL or the Transfer Portal? Traditional recruiting is a much smaller component of a program’s success than it used to be.

 

[Vowelguy]

Have you heard of NIL or the Transfer Portal? Traditional recruiting is a much smaller component of a program’s success than it used to be.

But transfer recruiting may be even more coach driven? Yes they'll go somewhere that has playing time, but they also know the window is closing and they need a coach that will help them improve fast.

 

[bobbyinaz]

In college sports the coaches ability to recruit is 75% of the game . Hiring a guy with no established reputation makes that aspect more difficult even if the replacement is an equally good or even slightly better game coach. Overachievement is the.best way to establish a reputation.

This is an antiquated view on recruiting.

Any coaches ability to recruit, in today’s world, is based on how much money he has to offer. Kids aren’t going to play for any coach without getting paid.

We just saw the #1 player in the country commit to BYU. That would NEVER happen without NIL and revenue share money.

Recruiting in 2024 is not what it used to be.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

But transfer recruiting may be even more coach driven? Yes they'll go somewhere that has playing time, but they also know the window is closing and they need a coach that will help them improve fast.

Money. That is the first thing players ask. Everything else is second.

 

[UConnJim]

Money. That is the first thing players ask. Everything else is second.

I have some direct and indirect knowledge of how kids/parents are looking at the money. I'm not speaking for every kid/family as everyone has different financial resources, but with the situations I'm familiar with if the money is relatively close, the kid will probably go where he is most comfortable with the situation. If there is a wide gap in the dollars, it's hard to turn down. And, the school, coaches, competitive situation,... matters. Also, sometimes a kid realizes that he may go from being a starter to being a backup and may prefer to stay a starter at lower pay.

 

[Rufus]

College Football TV Ratings

College football TV ratings for the 2024 regular season, bowls, College Football Playoff and National Championship.

www.sportsmediawatch.com

Conference Championship Game Ratings:

1. Georgia vs. Texas - 16.63M (combined viewership for both ABC and ESPN telecasts)
2. Oregon vs. Penn State - 10.50M (CBS)
3. Arizona State vs. Iowa State - 6.90M (ABC)
4. Clemson vs. SMU - 5.98M (ABC)
5. Boise State vs. UNLV - 3.01M (Fox)
6. Army vs. Tulane - 2.00M (ABC)
7. Ohio vs. Miami (Ohio) - 1.13M (ESPN)
8. Marshall vs. Louisiana - 392K (ESPN)

Of note:
The SEC won the ratings war here, but it should be noted the SEC Championship aired on multiple channels with a combined rating and it aired at a time there was no other college football game airing.

The B1G came in a clear second. The B1G Championship (10.50M) and ACC Championship (5.98M) aired at the exact same time. This likely took some viewers away from the B1G Championship, but it clearly hurt the ACC more. Still, the combined rating of 16.48M is slightly below the SEC rating of 16.63M, but again the SEC aired on multiple channels and the rating combines the ratings of each individual channel.

The Sun Belt came in last, having to air at the same time as the B1G and ACC Championship games. Those viewers (392K) are why the ACC + B1G combo were fewer viewers than the SEC. All three games aired at the exact same time, but the SEC had its own exclusive time window of 4pm on Saturday.

Brilliant move by ABC/ESPN - airing the ACC Game at the exact same time as the B1G Game does two things ---- one, it hurts the B1G at least minimally and the B1G isn't an ABC/ESPN product. Two, by damaging the ratings of the ACC in this game (plus the placement of ACC games as less priority time slots and channels during the regular season), it devalues the worth of the ACC, which means ABC/ESPN can show the ACC it isn't worth paying any more money to than it currently receives. If this strategy holds until the end of the ESPN contract (2027 or 2036 depending on if they renew or not), the ACC will be another bargain basement buy in 2036.

 

[Rufus]

Top 20 most watched games this season (does not include CFP or bowl games)

1. Georgia vs. Texas (SEC Championship) - 16.6M
2. Georgia vs. Texas (Regular Season) - 13.2M
3. Michigan vs. Ohio State - 12.3M
4. Georgia vs. Alabama - 12.0M
5. Oregon vs. Penn State (B1G Championship) - 10.5M
6. Alabama vs. Tennessee - 10.2M
7. Tennessee vs. Georgia - 10.0M
8. Ohio State vs. Penn State - 9.8M
9. Ohio State vs. Oregon - 9.6M
10. Texas vs. Texas A&M - 9.5M
11. Indiana vs. Ohio State - 9.3M
12. Texas vs. Michigan - 9.2M
13. USC vs. LSU - 8.6M
14. Georgia Tech vs. Georgia - 8.5M
15. Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M - 7.9M
16. Alabama vs. LSU - 7.9M
17. Texas vs. Oklahoma - 7.6M
18. Clemson vs. Georgia - 7.6M
19. Auburn vs. Alabama - 7.2M
20. Georgia vs. Mississippi - 7.1M

Of note, the SEC dominates this list, and the B1G comes in a strong second. The only conference championships to crack the top 20 most viewed games were the SEC (#1) and B1G (#5).

Of the 40 teams on this list, 25 are from the SEC, 12 are from the B1G, 2 are from the ACC, and 1 for Notre Dame.

For the 2 ACC teams and Notre Dame, the opponent played that got them on this list was an SEC team, not another ACC team: Georgia Tech vs. Georgia, Clemson vs. Georgia, and Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M.

No Big 12 teams made this list.

Remember the rumblings of a possible SEC vs. B1G scheduling agreement? That logic shows in these rankings:
12. Texas vs. Michigan - 9.2M
13. USC vs. LSU - 8.6M

 

[Rufus]

Highest rated game each week of the regular season:
Week 1 - USC vs. LSU - 8.62M
Week 2 - Texas vs. Michigan - 9.19M
Week 3 - Georgia vs. Kentucky - 6.60M
Week 4 - USC vs. Michigan - 6.32M
Week 5 - Georgia vs. Alabama - 11.99M
Week 6 - Tennessee vs. Arkansas - 5.29M
Week 7 - Ohio State vs. Oregon - 9.60M
Week 8 - Georgia vs. Texas - 13.19M
Week 9 - Nebraska vs. Ohio State - 5.96M
Week 10 - Ohio State vs. Penn State - 9.77M
Week 11 - Alabama vs. LSU - 7.90M
Week 12 - Tennessee vs. Georgia - 9.96M
Week 13 - Indiana vs. Ohio State - 9.32M
Week 14 - Michigan vs. Ohio State - 12.3M

Of note, this list is 100% SEC and B1G teams, and it is split 50/50 - 14 SEC teams and 14 B1G teams made up the opponents for the 14 games. The SEC won 6 weeks. The B1G won 6 weeks. The SEC team vs. The B1G team won the other 2 weeks.

There were 14 weeks to the season because everyone had two bye weeks.

 

[Rufus]

College Football TV Ratings: Top 10 most-watched teams of 2024 regular season revealed

The College Football TV Ratings are finalized for the 2024 regular season, and the Top 10 most-watched teams have been revealed.

www.on3.com

The ten most watched teams of 2024 (averages of all games on TV that are not conference-specific channels; includes conference championship games in the averages):

1. Georgia - 8.6 million
2. Ohio State - 6.8 million
3. Alabama - 6.6 million
4. Texas - 6.4 million
5. Tennessee - 5.4 million
6. Michigan - 5.2 million
7. Texas A&M - 4.9 million
8. LSU - 4.8 million
9. Kentucky - 4.5 million
10. Florida - 4.3 million

Of note, all ten are SEC or B1G, with the SEC taking 8 of the top 10 and the B1G 2.

Surprisingly, a 4-8 Kentucky team came in #9 ahead of the likes of Oregon, Penn State, and Indiana in the B1G and Notre Dame.

Since the SEC Network does not provide ratings information, the Big Ten Network numbers were not included either, even though the BTN does provide ratings information. This would have hurt all B1G teams in these rankings by a known amount. It also would have hurt SEC teams and ACC teams by an unknown amount.

 

[UConnJim]

Brilliant move by ABC/ESPN - airing the ACC Game at the exact same time as the B1G Game does two things ---- one, it hurts the B1G at least minimally and the B1G isn't an ABC/ESPN product. Two, by damaging the ratings of the ACC in this game (plus the placement of ACC games as less priority time slots and channels during the regular season), it devalues the worth of the ACC, which means ABC/ESPN can show the ACC it isn't worth paying any more money to than it currently receives. If this strategy holds until the end of the ESPN contract (2027 or 2036 depending on if they renew or not), the ACC will be another bargain basement buy in 2036.

You are reading too much into this as it is not ESPN's doing that the SEC is broadcast over the ACC. The SEC has proven to be the bigger draw over the ACC over the years so of course ESPN is going to provide better time slots to the SEC. Do you think ESPN is going to broadcast BC/SMU over Alabama/Georgia? Of course not. It's the reality of the situation that ACC football draws fewer viewers than the SEC. And, at least this year, the Big 12 had more viewers than the ACC. The other concerning thing for the ACC is that the SEC has surpassed them in college basketball and so has the Big 12.

 

[Rufus]

College Football Television Ratings, 2024 | mgoblog

I thought it might be interesting to take a brief look at college football television ratings this year.The scope here is Nielsen's reported ratings of total viewership for Saturday games on the major networks, plus ESPN and the Big Ten Network. I've added in the two games that drew more than...

www.mgoblog.com

Here is a slightly modified, but more comprehensive list based off ratings from at least 5 appearances on network TV or ESPN only:

The next list is all the schools that made five or more appearances on the major networks plus ESPN, along with average viewership. I excluded the BTN from this list.

Conference - School - Games - Average Viewers (in millions)

SEC - Georgia - 9 - 8.53

Big Ten - Ohio State - 9 - 6.87

SEC - Alabama - 10 - 6.53

SEC - Texas - 9 - 6.17

Big Ten - Michigan - 9 - 5.68

SEC - Tennessee - 8 - 5.40

SEC - Texas A&M - 8 - 5.05

Big Ten - Southern California - 7 - 4.87

SEC - LSU - 9 - 4.77

SEC - Florida - 8 - 4.69

SEC - Oklahoma - 7 - 4.57

SEC - Auburn - 6 - 4.05

Big Ten - Penn State - 8 - 4.00

Big Ten - Oregon - 7 - 3.89

Big Ten - Nebraska - 5 - 3.89

Big 12 - Colorado - 10 - 3.83

SEC - South Carolina - 6 - 3.81

Big Ten - Wisconsin - 5 - 3.81

SEC - Mississippi - 7 - 3.45

Indep. - Notre Dame - 11 - 3.01

SEC - Arkansas - 7 - 2.74

ACC - Miami - 9 - 2.63

Big Ten - Iowa - 6 - 2.55

ACC - Clemson - 9 - 2.26

Big 12 - Utah - 7 - 2.00

Big Ten - UCLA - 6 - 1.93

Big 12 - Texas Tech - 5 - 1.88

Big 12 - Kansas State - 8 - 1.62

Big 12 - Iowa State - 7 - 1.55

Big 12 - BYU - 7 - 1.53

Big 12 - Arizona - 6 - 1.23

There are 31 schools above. Essentially the national brands, as perceived by the networks. If a major college football league emerges, this might be a good initial framework. With the prime television slots, the networks try and show the bigger brands.

 

[Rufus]

Things that jump out at me on this list.............

The impact realignment has had on B1G ratings. You still have the traditional big two from the big two, little eight days:

1. Ohio State - 6.87
2. Michigan - 5.68

But now look at realignment:

3. USC - 4.87
4. Penn State - 4.00
5T. Oregon - 3.89
5T. Nebraska - 3.89

7. Wisconsin - 3.81

Above all ranked ahead of Notre Dame's 3.01

8. Iowa - 2.55 (higher than every team in the ACC and Big 12 except for Colorado and Miami)

9. UCLA - 1.93 (higher than every team in the ACC and Big 12 except for Colorado, Miami, Clemson, and Utah)

 

[Rufus]

The SEC benefited from realignment too (going back to Arkansas and South Carolina additions, but it is not as dramatic in the top tier as the B1G:

1. Georgia - 8.53
2. Alabama - 6.53
3. Texas* - 6.17
4. Tennessee - 5.40
5. Texas A&M* - 5.05
6. LSU - 4.77
7. Florida - 4.69
8. Oklahoma* - 4.57
9. Auburn - 4.05
10. South Carolina* - 3.81
11. Mississippi - 3.45

All of the above ranked ahead of Notre Dame's 3.01.

12. Arkansas* - 2.74

 

[Rufus]

You are reading too much into this as it is not ESPN's doing that the SEC is broadcast over the ACC. The SEC has proven to be the bigger draw over the ACC over the years so of course ESPN is going to provide better time slots to the SEC. Do you think ESPN is going to broadcast BC/SMU over Alabama/Georgia? Of course not. It's the reality of the situation that ACC football draws fewer viewers than the SEC. And, at least this year, the Big 12 had more viewers than the ACC. The other concerning thing for the ACC is that the SEC has surpassed them in college basketball and so has the Big 12.

Yes, I know.

 

[UConnJim]

The SEC benefited from realignment too (going back to Arkansas and South Carolina additions, but it is not as dramatic in the top tier as the B1G:

1. Georgia - 8.53
2. Alabama - 6.53
3. Texas* - 6.17
4. Tennessee - 5.40
5. Texas A&M* - 5.05
6. LSU - 4.77
7. Florida - 4.69
8. Oklahoma* - 4.57
9. Auburn - 4.05
10. South Carolina* - 3.81
11. Mississippi - 3.45

All of the above ranked ahead of Notre Dame's 3.01.

12. Arkansas* - 2.74

The TV execs know which schools pull in the ratings and which schools get pulled along by who they play. Look at Notre Dame for example. They didn't have a great schedule for TV ratings this year. And, they drew 3.93 million of NIU and 3.89 million for Army. Not may other schools could get those ratings against a MAC and AAC school. UCLA? They had games against LSU (2.7 million)/Oregon (1.5 million)/Penn St (2.75 million)./USC (2.16 million), so of course the ratings will be good. Heck, UConn would probably match those ratings.

 

[Rufus]

The TV execs know which schools pull in the ratings and which schools get pulled along by who they play. Look at Notre Dame for example. They didn't have a great schedule for TV ratings this year. And, they drew 3.93 million of NIU and 3.89 million for Army. Not may other schools could get those ratings against a MAC and AAC school. UCLA? They had games against LSU (2.7 million)/Oregon (1.5 million)/Penn St (2.75 million)./USC (2.16 million), so of course the ratings will be good. Heck, UConn would probably match those ratings.

Very true. Just imagine what Notre Dame's ratings would be in they joined the B1G (or SEC).

 

[pj]

Brilliant move by ABC/ESPN - airing the ACC Game at the exact same time as the B1G Game does two things ---- one, it hurts the B1G at least minimally and the B1G isn't an ABC/ESPN product. Two, by damaging the ratings of the ACC in this game (plus the placement of ACC games as less priority time slots and channels during the regular season), it devalues the worth of the ACC, which means ABC/ESPN can show the ACC it isn't worth paying any more money to than it currently receives. If this strategy holds until the end of the ESPN contract (2027 or 2036 depending on if they renew or not), the ACC will be another bargain basement buy in 2036.

If ABC/ESPN spends 12 consecutive years (through 2036) damaging their own asset (the ACC) to bargain down its renewal price, they're not someone I want for a business partner. And it's hard to see how that can be a "brilliant move".

Since the 2027 decision is ESPN's option, the only way that comes into play is if ESPN is not renewing in 2027. In that case, a new round of realignment will begin.