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Ahead of a key Big Ten Conference matchup between the Indiana Hoosiers and Ohio State Buckeyes, ESPN College GameDay was broadcasting live from the campus of The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. The show achieved strong consumption of its Week 13 episode, amassing an audience of 2.5 million viewers over the three-hour span, peaking at 3.5 million. For the final hour, which concludes with the illustrious headgear selection, the program attained an average of 3.1 million viewers. As a whole, the program registered as the fourth most-watched regular-season episode of all time and is up 21% over the comparable edition from last season. Viewership data for College GameDay is measured by Nielsen Media Research.
Rece Davis hosted the program alongside analysts Desmond Howard, Pat McAfee, Nick Saban, Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit. Additionally, college football insider Pete Thamel, betting analyst ‘Stanford Steve’ Coughlin and reporters Jen Lada and Jess Sims made contributions to the episode. The program also included special guest appearances from Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti and Ohio State head coach Ryan Day, along with a remote appearance from Florida head coach Billy Napier. Fans were able to witness Pat McAfee’s kicking contest and also win free giveaways and other prizes. Entering Week 13, College GameDay was averaging 2.1 million viewers for the 2024 college football season.
Throughout the morning, ESPN aired feature stories for the viewing audience, one of which was about Joe Saturino, the brother of Army special teams coordinator Sean Saturino. Marty Smith reported on the story about how Joe Saturino has contributed to the Army football program since moving across the country to live with his brother.
Lada reported on the football IQ of Ohio State defensive back Caleb Downs, while Simms highlighted the planned layout of Ohio Stadium for the NHL Stadium Series matchup between the Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday, March 1. Furthermore, Saban broke down the offense of the Black Knights and quarterback Bryson Daily before the team faced No. 6 Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium.
