The Celebration Bowl’s continued rise got another boost with the release of the television ratings for the NCAA’s Football Championship Division postseason games.
The 2023 Celebration Bowl featured Florida A&M defeating Howard 30-26 to win its first HBCU national title since 1999, drew 1.51 million viewers on ABC, the second most among FCS postseason contests. Only South Dakota State’s 23-12 quarterfinal win over Villanova ranked higher with 1.85 million viewers on ESPN. The viewership was impressive, considering it was the lowest-rated Celebration Bowl to date.
Most-Viewed #FCS Postseason Games From 2023-24 Season (TV Ratings):
1. Nova at SDSU (1.85M; ESPN)
2. Celebration Bowl (1.51M; ABC)
3. NDSU at SD (1.09M; ABC)
4. FCS National Championship (1.04M; ABC)
5. NDSU at Montana (790K; ESPN2)
6. Furman at Montana (679K; ESPN2)— Zach McKinnell (@zachmckinnell) January 9, 2024
The Jackrabbits’ 23-3 win over Montana in the FCS championship game (1.04 million) drew nearly half a million fewer viewers than the Celebration Bowl. The Celebration Bowl was also 400,000 ahead of North Dakota State vs. South Dakota (ABC) and almost double more than Montana’s playoff games against North Dakota State (790,000 on ESPN2) and Furman (679,000 on ESPN2).
