College football fans have nothing to worry about another understated performance from Gus Johnson, Fox’s main voice, piece by piece, like him Watch Ohio State explode Opponent in the show “Big Noon”.
The network’s top announcer team will not be with the Buckeyes this weekend.
Instead, Johnson and Joel Klatt travel to Boulder to watch two-loss Colorado take on five-loss Utah.
It’s not Ohio State-Michigan. Hell, it’s not even Ohio State-Indiana. But it’s arguably the best available Week 12 option for the Big Noon window.
Fox typically relies on the Big Ten to fill the 12 p.m. Eastern timeslot, and in a conference with four ranked teams and strong mediocrity in the other 14, there are no good options this week. Penn State and Indiana are idle, while Ohio State and Oregon face Northwestern and Wisconsin, respectively.
However, this isn’t exactly a new development.
Big Noon has been a huge success in recent years, but lost its luster in 2024 due to a confluence of several factors:
– Until this season, Fox had the ability to broadcast games in Texas and Oklahoma through its media deal with the Big 12. But the Longhorns and Sooners are now in the SEC, which has an exclusive media deal with ESPN and ABC.
— Meanwhile, the new-look Big 12 is missing historic programming that draws millions of viewers from coast to coast.
– Two of the Big Ten’s biggest brands, Michigan and USC, are struggling.
– The Big Ten media deal worked out by Fox gives NBC and CBS the opportunity to broadcast some key matchups each season.
Throw everything into a cauldron and the Big Noon inventory options won’t be as tasty as they used to be.
Oh, and there’s this: Colorado’s ratings have fallen precipitously year after year, even though the Buffaloes are light years better than they were in 2023.
Last year, the Buffs appeared nine times on Nielsen-rated networks and averaged 6.03 million viewers – an astonishing number for a program not named Ohio State, Michigan, Georgia or Alabama.
This season they appeared nine times on Nielsen ratings networks and averaged 3.64 million viewers.
Last year, the Buffs surpassed 5 million viewers five times.
They’ve overcome that hurdle once this year, against Nebraska, even though they still have three games left. (Note: Rating data comes from sportsmediawatch.com.)
Despite the decline, Deion Sanders and Co. still the best option for Fox this week and one of the best options every week.
Among the only Big 12 games this season to draw at least 3 million viewers was Colorado.
The TCU-Texas Tech match drew 2.36 million. Utah-Oklahoma drew 2.14 million. Others were in the 2 million range. But only Colorado’s games surpassed the 3 million mark.
Without Texas and Oklahoma, the conference simply doesn’t have the brands to achieve top rankings.
Except for the Deion Sanders brand, of course.
News, notes and nuggets
— With the Week 11 ratings now official, we can update the season’s totals: ABC is responsible for 14 of the 18 games that drew at least six million viewers, with Fox claiming two and NBC and CBS claiming one each.
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In the media: ABC and ESPN are reveling in their ratings and relevance, while Fox lags behind in both aspects
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Post-Pac-12 After Dark, ESPN 7:30 p.m. ratings drop
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In the media: The highest-rated games of 2024 (so far) and how they reflect conference realignment
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Fox’s Friday Night Strategy and the Future of TV Sports
In other words, the ratings game is great fun.
– Brigham Young’s victory over Utah in a thrilling holy war drew 2.07 million viewers. According to SportsMediaWatch, this is the largest season-ending attendance for a game that did not involve Colorado.
– ESPN’s “CollegeGameDay” will broadcast live from Athens before the Georgia-Tennessee game.
– Fox’s “Big Noon Kickoff,” which normally serves as a promotional tool for the network’s flagship game, will visit Boulder.
Viewer’s Guide: Week 12
One would think that a Saturday in mid-November would bring a series of clashes across the country. Unfortunately, this is not the case. This is a relatively quiet weekend with only one monster showdown. Not surprisingly, it’s with the SEC. However, some other games have playoff implications.
(All Pacific Times)
Utah at Colorado (9 p.m. on Fox): A chance for the Utes to play spoilsport as CU pushes for a spot in the Big 12 title game. They played that role last weekend (against BYU). Will they be executed this time? TV crew: Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt and Jenny Taft
Tennessee at Georgia (4:30 p.m. on ABC): On the list of things the Vols didn’t want to see this week, No. 1 was Georgia being completely disrespected by the CFP selection committee. The last time the Bulldogs were upset, they dominated Texas. TV crew: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Holly Rowe and Laura Rutledge
Oregon at Wisconsin (4:30 p.m. on NBC): The Ducks should roll, but keep an eye on this game in case something unexpected happens. Television crew: Noah Eagle, Todd Blackledge and Kathryn Tappen
Kansas at BYU (7:15 p.m. on ESPN): If past is prologue, the Cougars will secure the win with three or four seconds left. TV crew: Mark Jones, Roddy Jones and Quint Kessenich
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