Colorado-Colorado State sets TV record as most-watched ESPN late game in history
Sep 19, 2023, 8:35 AM
Quarterback Shedeur Sanders #2 of the Colorado Buffaloes scrambles against defensive back Jack Howell #17 of the Colorado State Rams in the fourth quarter at Folsom Field on September 16, 2023 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
(Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
Colorado’s double-overtime victory against Colorado State, which ended in the early hours of Sunday in most of the country, drew 9.3 million viewers to make it the most-watched late-night college football game ever on ESPN, the network said.
Coach Deion Sanders’ Colorado team did not kick off until after 10 p.m. Eastern and did not secure the victory until about 2:30 a.m.
Still, it was ESPN’s fifth most-watched regular-season game ever on the network for any time slot. That broadcast window for ESPN college football averaged about 1.7 million viewers last year, the network said.
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No. 19 Colorado’s first two games under Sanders were carried by Fox, with both slotted into the network’s Big Noon game. The Buffaloes’ victories over TCU and Nebraska averaged about 8 million viewers for Fox.
Colorado faces No. 10 Oregon on Saturday in a game scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on ABC.
