Weeknight College Football Ratings

So how does that Thursday Night ESPN compare with the traditional Saturday afternoon offerings as far as delivering the eyeballs. The banter around the Friday water cooler would suggest the popularity of the weeknight game although often the discussion is preceded by the. "I only caught part of it but..."

Information from http://sportsmediawatch.blogspot.com/
All ratings are final national ratings.

Thursday, September 13
2.5 : W. Virginia at Maryland

Thursday, September 20
2.2: Texas A&M at Miami (FL)

Friday, September 21
1.4 : Oklahoma at Tulsa

Thursday, September 27
1.2 : S. Mississippi at Boise St.

Friday, September 28
2.3: W. Virginia at USF

Thursday, October 11
1.9: Florida St. at Wake Forest

By comparison:
3.6: SEC on CBS, Florida/Kentucky (3:30 PM Saturday)
3.2: Saturday Night Football on ABC, Michigan/Illinois (8:00 PM Saturday)
2.1: Notre Dame football on NBC, USC/Notre Dame (3:30 PM Saturday)


15.9: NFL on FOX, Vikings/Cowboys (4:00 PM Sunday)
9.4: Sunday Night Football on NBC, Steelers/Broncos (8:15 PM Sunday)
(About the same as the three 3:30 p.m. college games combined)

The Irish, once the toast of college football, have fallen to the point where the marquee match up with USC fail to garner strong ratings than a Thursday night game (despite the clever SNL promotion). An principal of marketing that gets lost in the desire to work wonders by seeking nothing for something is the need for a real product with value to the consumer.

The Florida/Kentucky game was good reality television being presented live with an uncertain outcome. Such a product will attract and keep views while the USC domination of Notre Dame only holds appeal for the USC fan faithful and those that enjoy seeing the destruction of Notre Dame football.

The problem with the Saturday game and the Monday water cooler discussion is the fact the a whole day has come in between.

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