Michigan-Ohio State draws record viewership, most-watched game of 2023 CFB season

If you watched Michigan’s thrilling 30-24 win over Ohio State, you were not alone. Saturday’s showdown was the most-watched college football game of the 2023 regular season, averaging 19.1 million viewers on Fox.

The matchup was the most-watched regular-season game on any network since 2011 when LSU–Alabama averaged 20 million viewers.
It was also the most-watched college football regular-season game ever on Fox.
The Wolverines (12-0) face Iowa (10-2) in the Big Ten championship game Saturday as Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh will return from his suspension related to the team’s scouting and sign-stealing scandal.

Could this viewership be repeated?

In a game for the ages, Michigan and Ohio State delivered a historic viewership number for the iconic series. It doubled the previous most-watched game of the 2023 regular season, which was Oregon’s win over Colorado on Sept. 23 (10.03 million viewers on ABC).

Last year, a Michigan 42-27 win, averaged 17.14 million viewers on Fox. That was up 3 percent over the 2021 Wolverines-Buckeyes game, which drew 15.83 million viewers. The record for the game in the modern era came in 2006, which drew 21.04 million viewers on ABC in Ohio State’s 42-39 win. Both teams entered that game 11-0.

Per Sports Media Watch, the rivalry has topped more than 10 million viewers since 2014. This year had added juice given Michigan’s alleged in-person scouting scheme and the three-game suspension for Harbaugh. While Michigan-Ohio State will always draw a terrific audience, it’s unlikely we will see this year’s viewership repeated in upcoming years given the College Football Playoff expansion to 12 teams.

The reality is the loser of Michigan-Ohio State won’t be eliminated with one loss. — Richard Deitsch, senior sports media writer

Required reading

(Photo: Gregory Shamus / Getty)