College Football TV Ratings: Most-watched games of Week 4

A full slate of ranked matchups made for an intriguing Week 4 last week. The slate delivered, and college football saw strong TV ratings throughout the weekend of action, fueled by another big day for ABC, which swept the three key windows.

No. 1 Texas went to Tennessee and fought off the No. 14-ranked Vols despite a late charge in the final minutes. That kicked off ABC’s tripleheader, which included Florida’s resounding victory over Ole Miss in the late-afternoon slot. Finally, LSU cruised past Texas A&M in primetime as ABC swept for the second straight week.

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Those were just some of the notable results from a busy Saturday of college football action, and the TV ratings reflected it. Here are the Top 10 most-watched games of Week 4, according to Nielsen Big Data + Panel data. Viewership for every Nielsen-rated game is also below the Top 10.

Texas vs. Tennessee

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 12 p.m. ET
Channel: ABC
Viewers: 9.7 million

Defense was the name of the game in Texas’ victory over Tennessee at Neyland Stadium. The matchup led off Saturday’s slate and still brought a TV ratings win for ABC in its early college football slot as the most-watched game of the day.

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Considered the top game of the noon window, Texas’ victory brought in 9.7 million viewers for ABC to lead the Week 4 slate. Colin Simmons set a Longhorns program record with 5.5 sacks as Texas held off a late Vols push to get the road win.

Ole Miss vs. Florida

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 3:30 p.m. ET
Channel: ABC
Viewers: 8.3 million

Florida made quite a statement with its Week 4 victory over Ole Miss in Gainesville. The Rebels couldn’t stop Jadan Baugh and the Gators’ high-powered rushing attack as the game became one of the most-watched of the week.

Florida skyrocketed up the rankings after the game amid a strong start to the Jon Sumrall era. UF is now 4-0 heading into this week’s road matchup against Missouri, which will air in the same 3:30 p.m. ET window on ABC.

Texas A&M vs. LSU

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 7:30 p.m. ET
Channel: ABC
Viewers: 5.7 million

LSU bounced back well from its Week 3 loss at Ole Miss with a dominant performance against Texas A&M. ABC’s primetime game continues to be a big TV ratings draw as 5.7 million people tuned in for the Tigers’ victory – the top game of the week in that slot.

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Sam Leavitt went 17-of-23 for 312 yards and two touchdowns while clearly hobbling throughout the game, and two receivers had 100-yard games. Jackson Harris had 163 yards and two touchdowns while Winston Watkins had 107 yards.

Oregon vs. USC

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 7:30 p.m. ET
Channel: NBC
Viewers: 4.57 million

Amid high expectations this year, USC’s matchup against Oregon felt like a big one for Lincoln Riley. The Trojans kept things close and tied it up in the fourth quarter, but the Ducks got back-to-back touchdowns to pull away for the 41-27 victory in primetime.

Oregon quarterback Dante Moore suffered a scary injury in the first half of the game after taking a hit from a USC defender while going down to slide. Backup Dylan Raiola then entered and helped lead Oregon to the win, going 19-of-25 for 289 yards and two touchdowns.

Iowa vs. Michigan

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 3:30 p.m. ET
Channel: CBS
Viewers: 4.46 million

It came down to the literal last second at The Big House, but Iowa got a huge road victory over Michigan in CBS’ Big Ten game of the week. The close matchup also became one of the Top 10 most-watched college football games in Week 4.

Hank Brown found Reece Vander Zee on the final play with two seconds left for a walk-off touchdown to stun Michigan and send Iowa to its first victory in Ann Arbor since 2010. The Hawkeyes will now look to keep the momentum going in a key showdown against Ohio State in Week 5.

Northwestern vs. Indiana

Date/Time: Sept. 25 (Friday), 8 p.m. ET
Channel: FOX
Viewers: 3.86 million

FOX picked up a TV ratings win with its Friday night college football game in Week 4. Northwestern made things interesting against Indiana before the defending champions held on for a victory in Bloomington, and an average of nearly 3.9 million people watched.

Lee Beebe led the way for the Hoosiers after Turbo Richard left with an injury, totaling 203 rushing yards on the ground while also running in a touchdown. IU remained unbeaten at home under Curt Cignetti and will hit the road this week to take on Rutgers.

Illinois vs. Ohio State

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 12 p.m. ET
Channel: FOX
Viewers: 3.69 million

Jeremiah Smith put on a show in FOX’s Big Noon Saturday game as Ohio State took down Illinois. Despite the blowout, the matchup became one of the Top 10 most-watched games of Week 4 with 3.69 million viewers.

Smith had a monster day, hauling in 12 receptions for 217 yards and four touchdowns to lead the charge. Ohio State is now 3-1 on the year as the Buckeyes continue to bounce back from their loss to Texas, and this week’s game against Iowa will take center stage.

South Carolina vs. Alabama

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 7 p.m. ET
Channel: ESPN
Viewers: 2.93 million

Alabama cruised through its first SEC home game of the year with a win over South Carolina. Keelon Russell shined once again as ESPN picked up a college football TV ratings win in the primetime window on Saturday.

Russell went 21-for-27 for 365 yards and four touchdowns while leading the Crimson Tide to a fourth straight victory to start the year. A big-time matchup awaits in Week 5, though, as Alabama heads to Starkville to take on Kamario Taylor and Mississippi State.

Oklahoma vs. Georgia

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 3:30 p.m. ET
Channel: ESPN
Viewers: 2.63 million

As Oklahoma’s offense continued to struggle in Week 4, Georgia flexed its muscle once again. The Bulldogs rolled past the Sooners at Sanford Stadium in the late-afternoon window on ESPN, which became one of the most-watched games of the day.

UGA was able to capitalize on four Oklahoma turnovers, including three from quarterback John Mateer, en route to the 41-13 victory. The Bulldogs are off to a strong start to SEC play as they get ready to visit Vanderbilt in Week 5.

Utah vs. Iowa State

Date/Time: Sept. 26, 3:30 p.m. ET
Channel: FOX
Viewers: 1.31 million

Utah has not missed a beat under new head coach Morgan Scalley and got another big performance in Week 4. The Utes handled Iowa State with ease on the road as they got to 4-0 on the season, and 1.31 million people tuned in on average.

Wayshawn Parker ran for 174 yards and two touchdowns on the ground while quarterback Devon Dampier went 18-for-27 to 206 yards and two touchdowns. The Utes now enter their bye in Week 5 before taking on Kansas.

College Football TV Ratings: Full Week 4 viewership

Through the first few weeks of the college football season, TV ratings remain strong. The calendar will now flip to October and more high-profile matchups will appear on the schedule with conference play in full swing.