College Football Boom: Rose Bowl Crushes NBA Finals, Leads Massive CFP Ratings Even With Indiana Blowout Win

I think it's fair to say that college football is thriving when it comes to television ratings, with the CFP quarterfinals bringing in massive viewership across the country, with the Rose Bowl playing a major part. 

A few days following the second round of the 2025 playoff quarterfinals, television executives within the sport, and most importantly ESPN, are taking a rightful victory lap after ratings were released on Monday afternoon. 

Leading the way was the Rose Bowl game between Indiana and Alabama, which drew 23.9 million viewers during the afternoon time slot. Most importantly for television executives and advertisers was the fact that this game drew massive numbers despite being a 38-3 Hoosiers blowout win over the Crimson Tide. 

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Last year, the national championship game between Ohio State and Notre Dame drew an average of 22.1 million viewers, which this year's Rose Bowl outdrew by almost two million viewers. 

According to ESPN's release, this was the most watched CFP game of the 12-team era, and it was also up 13% compared to last season's Rose Bowl between Ohio State and Oregon. 

Interestingly enough, Indiana's blowout win recorded eight million more viewers than Game Seven of the NBA Finals, which saw the Oklahoma City Thunder defeat the Indiana Pacers. 

Indiana Drawing Numbers During Blowout Win

If you thought this Indiana squad led by head coach Curt Cignetti and quarterback Fernando Mendoza weren't a draw, the ratings would say otherwise. And yes, it helps that the Hoosiers were battling Alabama in Pasadena. 

As for the New Year’s Eve matchup between Ohio State and Miami, the Cotton Bowl drew an average 19 million viewers, which was up 37% compared to last year’s NYE game. 

Also, the Sugar Bowl drew an average 18.7 million viewers who watched Ole Miss defeat Georgia in what might end up being the best game of this year's college football playoff. 

The drama in New Orleans of the two teams battling until the final play of regulation did not take much of a hit because of it being a rematch. 

In terms of the Orange Bowl, even though the kickoff was at 11am CT, Oregon versus Texas Tech drew an average 15.9 million viewers. 

We will see how the CFP semifinals do, starting on Thursday night, as Ole Miss battles Miami in the Fiesta Bowl. On Friday, Indiana and Oregon will square-off in the Peach Bowl, which will be a rematch of their regular season thriller. 

Continue following OutKick and Trey Wallace for the latest college football news.