Deion Sanders may be able to play the transfer window like a fiddle, but in his second year as the head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes, the former NFL standout seems to have fumbled his mastery over the Nielsen dials.
While Coach Prime’s charges were media darlings a year ago, Colorado is losing favor among TV audiences. The Buffs’ 28-9 win over rival Colorado State scared up 3.25 million viewers on CBS Saturday night, which marked a 65% decline compared to the year-ago Rocky Mountain Showdown on ESPN (9.30 million).
Diminishing returns have been on the menu since Colorado kicked off its 2024 campaign against North Dakota State on Aug. 29. While the Buffaloes’ 31-26 victory averaged a sturdy 4.76 million viewers in ESPN’s Thursday primetime slot, that TV turnout paled in comparison to last year’s much-ballyhooed opener in Fox’s Big Noon Saturday window. Colorado’s three-point victory at TCU averaged 7.26 million viewers—and that was just a taste of the team’s drawing power.
In the course of the next three weeks, the Buffaloes would average a staggering 8.86 million viewers, a streak that included a season-high 10.03 million on ABC. Colorado’s 36-point blowout at the hands/wings/webbed feet of the Oregon Ducks was the second most-watched game of the regular season, trailing only the annual Ohio State-Michigan juggernaut on Fox (19.07 million viewers).
Through their first three nationally televised games, Colorado is averaging 4.56 million viewers per outing, down more than half (-51%) versus the 9.35 million viewers the team dialed up over the analogous period in 2023. As it happens, football fans seemed to grow weary of the Coach Prime show before the leaves started turning; by Oct. 13, Colorado’s deliveries had shrunk to 3.29 million versus Stanford, only to bottom out at 2.77 million with a 26-19 loss to Oregon State on Nov. 4.
In light of last season’s fade, the networks have been a bit more prudent about their commitment to Colorado this time around. While there’s a lot of give in the college football TV schedule, Sanders’ squad has just three confirmed national dates on tap, including an Oct. 26 meeting with Cincinnati that will be carried on a yet-to-be-determined ESPN platform, and a Black Friday matinee against Oklahoma State on ABC.
Colorado currently shares a 2-1 record with four other Big 12 teams. Its first intraconference matchup is set for this Saturday, when it takes on Baylor at home in a game that kicks off at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.
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