NJDuck Moderator No. 1 Share Posted January 23 When it comes to the landscape of college football in today’s day and age, one of the most important numbers to track doesn’t have to do with a team’s success on the field, but rather the number of eyeballs they garner off of it. In the world of conference realignment, the idea of TV ratings has become ever more important. With teams like Texas and Oklahoma leaving the Big 12 for the SEC, followed by USC, UCLA, Oregon, and Washington fleeing the Pac-12 for the Big Ten, the game has changed. You now have teams like Oregon State and Washington State — two successful football programs in the grand scheme of things — who have been left by the wayside largely because they don’t garner a ton of eyeballs. While the college football world has completely changed over the past year with the death of the Pac-12, it’s not hard to see the reasoning for it all when you look at the numbers and follow the money. If you pay attention to TV ratings, it makes sense that networks like FOX, ABC, CBS, etc. are willing to dish out large checks to the schools that garner the most eyeballs. So when looking at the new conference layout in the world of college athletics, what can we learn about the lay of the land when it comes to TV ratings? Take a look at the top-25 most-watched teams from last season and keep in mind the conference affiliation for each as you go along: All stats come from The Action Network and Sports Media Watch. Where the Ducks ranked among most-watched football teams in 2023 DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM A look at where the Oregon Ducks ranked among the most-watched teams in the nation during the 2023 college football season. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie No. 2 Share Posted January 23 It will be interesting to see where CO ranks if things cool down there and/or Sanders leaves. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicroBurst61 No. 3 Share Posted January 23 And people were Actually buying into the narrative last year that the B1G wasn't interested in adding Oregon because of...."viewership numbers and demographics". Yeah Right! Oregon has successfully established itself as a National Brand with a huge following throughout the nation, and yes, even internationally, and the execs in the B1G...knew that! Oregon fans won't have to travel quite as well because you could probably find "Duck" fans throughout the geographic footprint of the new B1G to cheer on our team. I am not completely sure of how this came to be. Maybe it was the high octane offense that not only entertained but fundamentally changed the college game from "3downs and a cloud of dust". Maybe the atmosphere and sheer fan volume on gameday in the "biggest lil" stadium west of the Rockies. Perhaps the classic "underdog" story attempting to write it's final, destined, climax of a Natty? Or, maybe, it is the Duck, as a mascot and identifiable icon, that draws people from all over to follow and cheer for OBD'S. Whatever the reasons OBD will continue to be a huge viewership draw in the new college landscape. I can only see those numbers increasing with elimination of most "east coast bias" since OBD will soon become the talk of the B1G conference (arent they are already); as the Ducks, rudely, establish themselves as a "top duck" in the pecking order of the B1G. The Oregon Ducks...Rock!...Rock. That isn't changing anytime soon. Go Quackers! 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastBayDuckDad Moderator No. 4 Share Posted January 23 On 1/23/2024 at 7:50 AM, Annie said: It will be interesting to see where CO ranks if things cool down there and/or Sanders leaves. The bloom is likely off the Buff rose after their underwhelming 2023 season, as Neon is no longer the novelty he was last fall. That said, Coach Prime certainly delivered in prime time and was money for broadcasters. Since the article didn't cite the match-ups with the most viewership, here's one with the top 101. Aside from the two Duck-Fusky contests, Oregon-Colorado, the Buffs early games and UW in the CFP, the Pac-12 (R.I.P.) didn't get too many eyeballs compared to the B1G and SEC https://footballscoop.com/news/the-101-most-watched-games-of-the-2023-college-football-season It'll be interesting to see what the numbers look like for Oregon-tOSU and Oregon-Michigan this fall. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JabbaNoBargain No. 5 Share Posted January 23 This is actually amazing, our numbers should only go up. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
candyduck No. 6 Share Posted January 23 Fun to see lil ole Oregon up there with the likes of crazy arse fans. Hum...I guess that makes us crazy arse fans! Buffs will be irrelevant once they make their slash, I mean thud in the Big 12. I give that two years max. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
criticalduck No. 7 Share Posted January 23 In the top 10 of most watched programs! Yet with two &%$#@! commisioners OBD had many after dark games! I always said the teams that generate the conference money should always play prime time games!! Hopefully the B1G will recognize this and put OBD in prime slots!! 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
