College football TV ratings: Top 10 most-watched games of Week 5

Georgia at Alabama lived up to the hype and delivered the first college football TV ratings of the young season.

A new edition of last year SEC Championship Game that attracted 17.52 million CBSthis year’s edition on ABC immediately became a classic. The Crimson Tide went up 28-0 in the first half just to see Carson Beck and Georgia wipes it out, taking a 34-33 lead late in the fourth quarter. Jalen Milroe and true freshman wide receiver Ryan Williams He scored a 75-yard touchdown that was a must-watch highlight of the season.

On3 looks at the most watched games of the fifth week. On3 compiled data from network press releases. Programming Insider And Sports Business Journal to compile the 10 most-watched games of Week 5 of the college football season. Data from SEC Network, ACC Network And Longhorn Network are not included because the broadcasters do not pay Nielsen to measure viewership. All Nielsen numbers include streaming viewership and away viewership.

Here’s the full week five college football TV ratings breakdown:

1. Georgia at Alabama
Channel: ABC
Date/Time: Saturday, September 28, 7:30 p.m. ET
Viewers: 11.98 million

The top-five matchup between Georgia and Alabama lived up to the hype. The Crimson Tide took a 28-0 lead, but Georgia rallied to take a 34-33 lead late in the fourth quarter. Alabama true freshman wide receiver Ryan Williams spun past Georgia defenders for a 75-yard touchdown to give the Tide the lead for good, 41-34. The game peaked at 14.1 million viewers, becoming ESPN’s most-streamed college football regular season game ever and the most-watched primetime regular season game on any network since 2017.

2. Oklahoma at Auburn
Channel: ABC
Date/Time: Saturday, September 28, 4:00 p.m. ET
Viewers: 5.04 million

Oklahoma recovered from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter and fell behind Auburn to 0-2 in the SEC. The Sooners won their first conference game in the SEC, led by a Kip Lewis The interception returned 61 yards for the game-winning touchdown. Oklahoma’s true freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins made his first career start and totaled 230 yards of offense in the 27-21 win. The loss leaves Auburn thinking about next steps.

3. Colorado at UCF
Channel: FOX
Date/Time: Saturday, September 28, 4:17 p.m. ET
Viewers: 4.08 million

In a statement, Big 12 wins for Colorado above UCF, Shedeur Sanders threw for 290 yards and three touchdowns and Travis Hunter had a touchdown catch and an interception for the Buffaloes. Colorado is now in its bye week and is 4-1 this season and 2-0 in the Big 12. The Buffs host No. 20 Kansas State on October 12th. Of note, Colorado finished third to UCF in the TV ratings despite not being in the Big Noon Saturday time slot on FOX.

4. Kentucky at Ole Miss
Channel: ABC
Date/Time: Saturday, September 28th, 12pm ET
Viewers: 3.98 million

Kentucky almost upset Georgia two weeks ago. Last Saturday, the Wildcats stunned No. 6 Oxford Ole Miss. Ole Miss’ kicker missed a 48-yard field goal in the final minute to win Mark Stoops’ highest victory. Kentucky had not beaten such a ranked team on the road since 1977. The Wildcats also dominated time of possession, holding the ball for 40 minutes. Ole Miss visits South Carolina this weekend.

5. Minnesota at Michigan
Channel: FOX
Date/Time: Saturday, September 28th, 12pm ET
Viewers: 3.59 million

Minnesota dragged Michigan 27-24 with about 90 seconds left in the game and it appeared he took an onside kick. The officials ruled that Minnesota was offside and forced another free kick, which was restarted by Michigan. The Wolverines ran out of time and came away with the win. The Big Ten announced Tuesday that it is changing the way it takes onside kicks. The referee teams now position the linesman and the main linesman on the kicking team’s retention line.

6. Virginia Tech at Miami
Channel: ESPN
Date/Time: Friday, September 27, 7:30 p.m. ET
Viewers:

ESPN ranked sixth that week with 3.3 million viewers Miami–Virginia Techthe second-best Friday night game since 2018 for the cable channel. Miami quarterback Cam Ward was 24 of 38 for 343 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions. The game ended in controversy as a Virginia Tech game-winning touchdown was ruled incomplete after a review of the game’s final play.

7. Illinois at Penn State
Channel: NBC
Date/Time: Saturday, September 28, 7:30 p.m. ET
Viewers: 3.09 million

Nick Singleton ran for 102 yards and a touchdown Kaytron Allen added 94 yards and a score as No. 9 Penn State No. 19 knocked off Illinois 21-7. The win moved the Nittany Lions to 4-0 on the season and 1-0 in the Big Ten. Hosted by Penn State UCLA this week before a road challenge at USC on October 12th. James Franklin has Penn State in line for a spot on the first 12-man team College Football Playoffs.

8. Wisconsin at USC
Channel: CBS
Date/Time: Saturday, September 28, 3:30 p.m. ET
Viewers: 2.89 million

USC overcame an 11-point halftime deficit and stormed back to beat Wisconsin 38-21 after three turnovers in the first half. Lincoln Riley and the Trojans improved to 3-1 on the season and 1-1 in the Big Ten. Wisconsin is now 2-2 and needs to win against Wisconsin on Saturday Purdue for bowl eligibility. Wisconsin at USC was another ratings win for CBS.

9. Washington at Rutgers
Channel: FOX
Date/Time: Friday, September 27, 8:00 p.m. ET
Viewers: 1.92 million

FOX continues to enjoy success with its Friday Night Football games. Washington missed a 55-yard field goal as time expired. Rutgers held on with a 21-18 win to improve to 4-0 on the year and 1-0 in the Big Ten. The Scarlet Knights will not play Michigan, Penn State, Ohio State or Oregon this season. Run back Kyle Monangai ran for 132 yards and a touchdown. He averaged 589 yards per carry this season, averaging 6.1 yards.

10. Oklahoma State at Kansas State
Channel: ESPN
Date/Time: Saturday, September 28th, 12pm ET
Viewers: 1.87 million

Kansas State recovered from a heavy defeat at BYU. quarterback Avery Johnson Passed for three touchdowns and ran for two more as the Wildcats passed Oklahoma State 42-20, which has now lost two in a row. Kansas State has a bye before a visit to Colorado on October 12th.