Despite two consecutive losses, the Colorado Buffaloes continue to be a ratings sensation.
USC-Colorado notched 7.24 million viewers on Fox’s “Big Noon Saturday” broadcast, according to SportsMediaWatch. The Buffs’ least-watched game this season was still the most-watched game of the week.
The second-most-watched game, the Georgia-Auburn matchup on “SEC on CBS,” garnered 6.4 million viewers.
Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes have played in one of the two most-viewed games of each week this season, and the team is averaging 8.5 million viewers through September — an unprecedented number according to Fox Sports president of Insights and Analytics Michael Mulvihill.
“The average Colorado audience has been more than double what any network is averaging for all CFB,” he tweeted.
As a result, the college football broadcast duopoly of ESPN and Fox have been fighting over the team.
Fox and ESPN both have rights to the Pac-12, so they trade off opportunities to broadcast the Buffs’ games. The networks have sent their morning shows like “First Take” and “Undisputed” to campus, as well as Saturday morning pregame shows “College GameDay” and “Big Noon Kickoff.”
When the Buffs join the Big 12 next season, that trend could continue. The Big 12 will be the only Power conference with a broadcast deal including both networks.
