On media: The top-rated games of 2024 (thus far) and how they reflect conference realignment

College football’s new world order is unfolding before our eyes and on our screens. Although television viewership at the highest level is essentially unchanged compared to this point last season, the distribution of eyeballs has been completely reshaped by realignment.

The SEC and Big Ten are dominating the media market like they are dominating every other aspect of the sport.

In fact, it’s not even a two-conference race at this point. The SEC is blowing past the Big Ten in the ratings game, as well.

Using audience data provided by SportsMediaWatch, the Hotline examined the highest-rated games over the past three-and-a-half seasons — since the sport emerged from COVID.

We identified the games that have drawn at least five million viewers, which, admittedly, is a higher threshold than the networks themselves use (four million) to identify the biggest broadcasts.

To summarize three-and-a-half years into a few sentences:

There were 13 games with at least five million viewers through the first seven weeks of the 2021 season but only nine to that point in the fall of 2022. The downturn did not last, however. The first half of the 2023 season produced 18 games with at least five million viewers, and the same timeframe this year has generated 17 games at, or above, the threshold.

But the conference breakdown is different this fall, with SEC teams filling 20 of the 34 slots in those 17 high-viewership games. That’s 59 percent for a single conference.

The Big Ten is second with eight of the 34 slots, followed by the ACC with four and the Big 12 and Notre Dame with one each.

Last year, there was balance.

The SEC filled just 10 of the 36 slots (across 18 games), while the Pac-12 — aided by the early-season Colorado craze — also occupied 10 slots.

The ACC followed with five, the Big 12 and Notre Dame had four apiece, and the Big Ten had just two. (The 36th spot went to the Mountain West, for Colorado State’s appearance against Colorado.)

Even though the SEC added only two teams this year, Texas and Oklahoma, whereas the Big Ten added four, the viewership trend has moved decidedly to the land where “It just means more” — at least through seven weeks.

Granted, the broadcast networks and kickoff windows are critical in determining audience numbers.

But given that SEC conference games account for seven of the 17 broadcasts that have drawn at least five million viewers — and that all of those games have been on ABC — it seems like Disney made the right move going all-in with the conference.

Audience data for 2024

If you’re curious, here are the 17 games thus far that have drawn at least five million viewers.

(Note: The SMW website uses Nielsen data, which does not include streamers.)

11.99 million: Georgia-Alabama (ABC)
9.60 million: Ohio State-Oregon (NBC)
9.19 million: Texas-Michigan (Fox)
8.62 million: USC-LSU (ABC)
7.92 million: Notre Dame-Texas A&M (ABC)
7.63 million: Texas-Oklahoma (ABC)
7.58 million: Clemson-Georgia (ABC)
6.60 million: Georgia-Kentucky (ABC)
6.35 million: Miami-Florida (ABC)
6.32 million: USC-Michigan (CBS)
6.27 million: Tennessee-Oklahoma (ABC)
6.00 million: South Carolina-Alabama (ABC)
5.67 million: Colorado-Nebraska (NBC)
5.29 million: Tennessee-Arkansas (ABC)
5.04 million: Oklahoma-Auburn (ABC)
5.03 million: Alabama-Wisconsin (Fox)
5.00 million: Florida State-Georgia Tech (ESPN)

Notes and nuggets

Around and about the college football media space:

— ESPN’s ‘College GameDay’ drew an impressive audience of 2.3 million viewers for the Oct. 12 episode in Eugene ahead of the Oregon-Ohio State showdown. (Of note: The game was on NBC.) According to ESPN, the iconic pregame show is on pace for its highest-rated season.

— ‘GameDay’ will set up shop in Austin this weekend for the Texas-Georgia duel while Fox’s ‘Big Noon Kickoff’ will broadcast from Bloomington, where Indiana hosts Nebraska. Last week, ‘Big Noon Kickoff’ was in Provo for the Brigham Young-Arizona game. Provo and Bloomington on back-to-back Saturdays — that was not on our pregame show bingo card this season.

— The Hotline addressed the success of Friday night games on Fox a few weeks ago, so it’s worth noting the quadruple-header planned this week. The lineup starts at 4 p.m. (Pacific) with Florida State-Duke on ESPN2, followed by Oregon-Purdue at 5 p.m. on Fox, then Oklahoma State-BYU at 7:15 p.m. on ESPN and the nightcap, Fresno State-Nevada, at 7:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.

Viewer’s guide

Two SEC showdowns dominate the Week 8 schedule, with back-to-back games consuming more than seven hours of airtime on ABC.

(All times Pacific)

Nebraska at Indiana (9 a.m. on Fox): Are the undefeated Hoosiers a legitimate contender for the Big Ten title and a College Football Playoff berth? We’ll know by lunchtime on the West Coast. TV crew: Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt and Jenny Taft

Alabama at Tennessee (12:30 p.m. on ABC): This showdown of 5-1 teams isn’t a playoff elimination game, but the loser will have a difficult road. Both teams have looked vulnerable lately, although fan anxiety in Tuscaloosa is far greater than in Nashville. TV crew: Sean McDonough, Greg McElroy and Molly McGrath

Georgia at Texas (4:30 p.m. on ABC): A matchup made possible by conference realignment that figures to challenge Georgia-Alabama as the most-watched game of the season. TV crew: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Holly Rowe and Katie George

UNLV at Oregon State (7 p.m. on The CW): Should be the best night game of the weekend and a chance for fans to see what UNLV is all about ahead of the Rebels’ duel with Boise State on Oct. 25. TV crew: Thom Brennaman, Max Browne and Heidi Watney

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