The annual MEAC/SWAC Challenge, a closely contested Week 0 game that feature a team that won the HBCU national championship, was the-most watched game the event’s history

Per ESPN, Florida A&M’s 24-23 win over Norfolk State drew 1.3 million viewers on ABC.

📢 @ESPNCFB viewership is off to a 🔥 start in Week 0

🏈 @cfbireland between @GeorgiaTechFB & @FSUFootball delivered 5.0M viewers, up 40% over 2023 & the most-watched Week 0 game in 5 years
🏈 @MEAC_SWAC scored 1.3M viewers, the most-watched edition on record pic.twitter.com/WBQgzy4UUb

— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) August 27, 2024

Only Florida State vs. Georgia State — played on ESPN earlier in the day — received a higher TV rating.

For comparison, last season’s Jackson State’s 37-7 win over South Carolina State drew an average of 922,000 viewers and a 0.57 TV rating on ABC in the same time slot.