Florida State, even in a Week 0 matchup vs. a Conference USA opponent, managed to draw plenty of eyeballs for The CW.
The network announced on Wednesday that the Seminoles’ season-opening victory over New Mexico State set a record as the most-watched sports broadcast in the history of the network.
The matchup averaged 1.96 million viewers, peaking at 2.4 million, per Nielsen Panel + Big Data. Per the release, the game also delivered the network’s largest sports audience in the key Adults 25-54 demo (718,000) and was the second strongest primetime broadcast program of the night in the demo, surpassing all shows on ABC, CBS and NBC.
Last season, FSU averaged 4 million viewers per game, ranking second in the ACC and ninth in the country. The conference’s new revenue distribution model factors in viewership, with Florida State set to earn a projected $44.9 million (according to numbers shared by athletic director Michael Alford this past February).
Florida State next takes on the No. 19 SMU Mustangs on Monday, September 7 (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).