Ole Miss’s 32-24 win over LSU didn’t just deliver a big moment in Oxford. It delivered a massive audience for ESPN.
The network said Tuesday that the ABC telecast averaged 10.9 million viewers, making it the most-watched game of the week across ESPN’s family of networks. The matchup peaked at 13.7 million viewers and, according to ESPN, ranked as the eighth-highest-rated regular-season broadcast of the decade on the network family.
The game had plenty of juice before kickoff, with Lane Kiffin making his long-awaited return to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Ole Miss built a sizable lead and then had to fend off LSU down the stretch to come away with the win.
Elsewhere on ESPN’s Saturday slate, Alabama’s 50-36 win over Florida State drew 7 million viewers and peaked at 8 million. That ABC broadcast started later than scheduled and was interrupted just before halftime by weather in the Tuscaloosa area before eventually moving to ESPN2 because of the Ole Miss-LSU game.
Kentucky’s upset of Texas A&M at Kyle Field also delivered a strong number, averaging 5.4 million viewers and peaking at 8.1 million. Georgia’s win at Arkansas on ABC averaged 4 million viewers and peaked at 4.8 million, while Clemson’s win over North Carolina on ESPN, another weather-affected broadcast, averaged 3.6 million and peaked at 4.7 million.
Week 4 brings another busy lineup: Texas at Tennessee at noon, Ole Miss at Florida Louisville at noon, Oklahoma at Georgia at 3:30, and South Carolina at Alabama at 7:00.
In Other News...
Ole Miss Reels As Two Student Deaths Leave Alarming Questions Unanswered
A somber weekend on the Ole Miss campus has left the university community searching for answers after officials confirmed the deaths of two male students, ages 18 and 20. Law enforcement is handling the cases as two separate investigations, and university leaders have been careful to say very little beyond urging restraint as the facts are still coming in.
Investigators recovered packaged kratom at both scenes, but have not said whether it played any role in either death. With autopsy and toxicology results still pending, the uncertainty has only fed a wave of social media speculation, leaving the school and its students waiting for official findings before drawing conclusions. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Gets A Timely Defensive Boost Before A Charged Road Test
Sharif Denson was back in the mix for Ole Miss in the win over LSU, and the timing mattered. After working his way back from injury, the former Florida defensive back turned in nine tackles and gave the Rebels a steadier presence in the secondary, the kind of return that can settle a defense heading into a difficult stretch.
Denson said the extra week of rest was important, and he also made clear he sees his role as bigger than just getting back on the field. He has leaned into a leadership role in the secondary, and now Ole Miss gets one more layer to this weeks buildup as he prepares to face his old team in the next game. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Just Put Its LSU Win On A Much Bigger Stage
Ole Miss 32-24 win over LSU carried far beyond the box score, turning into the most-watched game of the week on ABC with an average of 10.9 million viewers. In a slate that also featured Alabama-Florida State, Kentucky-Texas A&M, Georgia-Arkansas and Clemson-North Carolina, it was the Rebels and Tigers who ended up drawing the biggest audience, a reminder that some September matchups land with the feel of a national event.
The Alabama-Florida State game still pulled seven million viewers after a weather delay sent it to ESPN2, but Ole Miss-LSU stood alone at the top of the weekends TV rankings. For a Rebels program trying to keep building momentum, that kind of stage matters almost as much as the result itself, because wins like this can travel well beyond the SEC West and into the broader conversation about the season. [Read more 🡒]