The build-up to the No. 1 vs. No. 3 matchup of Texas vs. Ohio State can be rivaled by few games in college football’s history, and despite the clash itself being lackluster, the viewership was not.
FOX Sports reported that the battle between the Longhorns and Buckeyes became the most-watched Week 1 game of all time, with it averaging 16,623,000 viewers and peaking at 18,569,000 towards the latter stages of the afternoon.
Texas-Ohio State also ranked as the third-most watched CFB game ever on FOX Sports’ channels.
This all comes after a long offseason of fans griping about the network placing its marquee matchups at noon EST. With Ohio State being a predominantly featured team on FOX, the Buckeyes have been the biggest “victim” of the early starts, but it has done little to faze their level of play or fans.
Thus, it appears that Big Noon Kickoff is here to stay, and Ohio State will make at least one more appearance in the time slot when it clashes with Michigan in late November, although there is certainly the potential for the Buckeyes to find themselves in that slot during other weeks.
But while Ohio State plays at 3:30 and 7:00 EST over the next two weeks, it is Texas that will find itself playing another noon game next week when it hosts San Jose State.
Current sports editor with the Enterprise-Journal in McComb, Mississippi. 2024 graduate from Mizzou and college athletics enthusiast.
