College football fans don’t have anything to fret about one other understated performance from Gus Johnsonthe leading Fox play-by-play voice, like him watches Ohio State blow it up Opponent within the show “Big Noon”.
The network's best anchors won't be with the Buckeyes this weekend.
Instead, Johnson and Joel Klatt travel to Boulder to observe two-loss Colorado tackle five-loss Utah.
It's not Ohio State-Michigan. Hell, it's not even Ohio State-Indiana. But it's arguably the most effective available Week 12 option for the Big Noon window.
Fox typically relies on the Big Ten to fill the 12 p.m. Eastern time slot, and this week there are not any good options in a conference with 4 ranked teams and intense mediocrity in the opposite 14. Penn State and Indiana are idle, while Ohio State and Oregon face Northwestern and Wisconsin, respectively.
However, this isn't exactly a brand new development.
Big Noon has been a powerful success lately, but has lost its luster in 2024 attributable to a confluence of several aspects:
– Until this season, Fox had the flexibility to broadcast games in Texas and Oklahoma through its media cope with the Big 12. But the Longhorns and Sooners are actually within the SEC, which has an exclusive media cope with ESPN and ABC.
— Meanwhile, the revamped Big 12 is missing the legendary programming that pulls hundreds of thousands of viewers from coast to coast.
— Two of the Big Ten's biggest brands, Michigan and USC, are reeling.
– The Big Ten media deal that Fox has worked out gives NBC and CBS the chance to have a handful of massive showdowns each season.
Throw the whole lot right into a cauldron and inventory options for Big Noon aren't nearly as tasty as they once were.
Oh, and there's this: Colorado's rankings are down precipitously year-over-year, regardless that the Buffaloes are light years higher than they were in 2023.
Last 12 months, the Buffs appeared nine times on Nielsen-rated networks and averaged 6.03 million viewers – an astonishing number for a program not named Ohio State, Michigan, Georgia or Alabama.
This season, they appeared nine times on Nielsen rankings networks and averaged 3.64 million viewers.
Last 12 months, the Buffs topped 5 million viewers five times.
They've overcome that hurdle once this 12 months, against Nebraska, although they still have three games left. (Note: Rating data comes from SportsMediaWatch.com.)
Despite the decline, Deion Sanders and Co. are Fox's most suitable choice this week and probably the greatest options on the market.
The only Big 12 games this season to attract not less than 3 million viewers were Colorado.
The TCU-Texas Tech match drew 2.36 million. Utah-Oklahoma State drew 2.14 million. Others were within the 2 million range. But only Colorado games have surpassed the three million mark.
Without Texas and Oklahoma, the conference simply doesn't have the brands to supply top-notch rankings.
Unlike the Deion Sanders brand, after all.
News, notes and nuggets
— With the Week 11 rankings now official, we are able to update the season totals: ABC is answerable for 14 of the 18 games that drew not less than 6 million viewers, with Fox claiming two and NBC and CBS claiming one each.
In other words, the rankings game is a blast.
– Brigham Young's comeback victory over Utah in an exhilarating holy war drew 2.07 million viewers. According to SportsMediaWatch, that is the most important late-game viewership of the season for a match not involving Colorado.
— ESPN's “CollegeGameDay” will air live from Athens before the Georgia-Tennessee game.
– Fox's “Big Noon Kickoff,” which normally serves as a promotional tool for the network's biggest game, will visit Boulder.
Viewer's Guide: Week 12
You'd think a Saturday in mid-November would bring a bevy of massive duels across the country. Unfortunately that is just not the case. This is a comparatively relaxed weekend with just one monster matchup. Not surprisingly, it's with the SEC. However, a handful of other games have playoff implications.
(All times Pacific)
Utah in Colorado (9 a.m. on Fox): A probability for the Utes to play spoilsport as CU heads toward a spot within the Big 12 title game. They whiffed on the role last weekend (against BYU). Will they execute this time?
Tennessee at Georgia (4:30 p.m. on ABC): On the list of things the Vols didn't wish to see this week, No. 1 was Georgia being completely disrespected by the CFP selection committee. The last time the Bulldogs were upset, they overwhelmed Texas.
Oregon at Wisconsin (4:30 p.m. on NBC): The Ducks should roll, but keep watch over this game in case something unexpected happens.
Kansas at BYU (7:15 p.m. on ESPN): If what's over is only a prologue, the Cougars will secure the win with three or 4 seconds left.
image credit : www.mercurynews.com