Ohio State's Sugar Bowl Win over Clemson Draws 19.1 Million Viewers, Most of Any Non-NFL Sporting Event Since Last Year's National Championship Game

By Dan Hope on January 5, 2021 at 3:00 pm
Justin Fields and Tuf Borland
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19.1 million people watched Ohio State beat Clemson on Friday night.

Friday night's Sugar Bowl matchup between the Buckeyes and Tigers drew the largest college football viewership of the season – slightly edging out the Rose Bowl between Alabama and Notre Dame (18.9 million) – and was the most-watched non-NFL sporting event since last season's national championship game, the Sugar Bowl announced Tuesday.

Columbus was the highest-rated TV market for the Sugar Bowl with a 40.1 rating, while Alabama fans interested in seeing who their national championship game opponent would be drove Birmingham to a close second in Sugar Bowl ratings (38.6). Conversely, Columbus had the second-highest rating for the Rose Bowl (23.6), though a distant second behind Birmingham (46.2).

Viewership for the Sugar Bowl was down 9 percent from Ohio State's 2019 College Football Playoff matchup with Clemson, which drew 20.9 million viewers. Still, the two CFP semifinals were easily the most-watched TV events on New Year's Day, making it the third-highest day of viewership ever for ESPN networks.

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