Tennessee-South Carolina Among Week 8's Most-Watched Games as Texas-Ole Miss Tops Ratings

College football kept drawing large television audiences in Week 8, following an especially strong showing the week before. According to Nielsen Big Data + Panel figures, the most-watched game of the weekend was Ole Miss at Texas on ABC in primetime on October 24, which averaged 8.1 million viewers. Texas held on for a needed win at home after two straight losses, with quarterback Arch Manning throwing for 212 yards and a touchdown and adding two rushing scores despite two interceptions.

Tennessee's game at South Carolina also landed in the top 10, finishing sixth for the week. The SEC matchup, televised on ESPN in the 3:30 p.m. ET window on October 24, averaged 3.04 million viewers. It stayed close until the end, but a late Tennessee fumble proved costly as South Carolina kicked the winning field goal and earned a ranked victory at Williams-Brice Stadium under coach Shane Beamer.

The rest of the top five reflected the strength of the ABC and FOX windows. Indiana's overtime win at Michigan, its first victory at Michigan Stadium in 57 years, drew 7.01 million viewers on FOX at noon. Alabama's win over Texas A&M averaged 5.9 million on ABC in the afternoon, with quarterback Keelon Russell passing for 311 yards and three touchdowns, and UCF's double-overtime upset of previously unbeaten BYU averaged 4.74 million on FOX. LSU's 38-17 win over Auburn completed ABC's presence near the top with 3.48 million viewers in the early window.

The lower half of the top 10 included Wisconsin's primetime upset of USC on NBC, Miami's 52-23 win over Pitt on ESPN, UCLA's win over Michigan State on CBS, and Utah's late-night win over Houston on ESPN, which drew 1.58 million viewers. For Tennessee, the ranking is a reminder that even in defeat, the Volunteers remain a reliable draw in a featured SEC slot, and the audience for the South Carolina game trailed only a handful of national matchups in a crowded weekend.