The television ratings are in for the Ohio State-Notre Dame National Championship and the numbers are down compared to the Michigan-Washington National Championship last season.
In a rivalry that compares everything we are comparing television ratings as well — especially when Michigan and Ohio State both appeared in the Rose Bowl and National Championship in back-to-back seasons.
While Ohio State beat Notre Dame 34-23 to win the National Championship on Monday night, the ratings dipped 12 percent compared to Michigan’s 34-13 National Championship win over Washington last year.
The Ohio State-Notre Dame CFP national championship averaged 22.1 million viewers on ESPN.
Last year’s Michigan-Washington title game last year drew 25.1 million. pic.twitter.com/hcxVpUiN74
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) January 22, 2025
Per Front Office Sports , Ohio State’s win over Notre Dame averaged 22.1 million viewers while Michigan’s win over Washington drew 25.1 million viewers.
This wasn’t the only playoff game where Michigan’s ratings were better than Ohio State’s — the same trend could be found with the Rose Bowl ratings . Michigan’s 27-20 Rose Bowl win over Alabama in overtime last year averaged 27.2 million viewers while Ohio State’s 41-20 win over Oregon in the Rose Bowl this year averaged 24.3 million viewers.
While ratings don’t really matter for bragging rights, they still show what intrigues folks nationally, and it appears the 2023 Michigan Wolverines interested the country a bit more than the 2024 Ohio State Buckeyes.