The inaugural college football playoffs generated the largest audiences in cable television history.

The Alabama/Ohio State Sugar Bowl drew a 15.2 final rating and 28.3 million viewers on ESPN Thursday afternoon, marking the largest audience in cable history. The previous high was set earlier in the day by the Oregon/Florida State Rose Bowl, which drew a 14.8 and 28.2 million.

Prior to this year, the all-time cable record was 27.3 million for the Auburn/Oregon BCS National Championship Game in 2011. College football now accounts for the six largest cable television audiences, and ESPN holds the top eighteen.

Thursday’s games, the first ever college football playoff semifinals, topped every BCS National Championship Game since Alabama/Texas in 2010 (30.8M). Only four BCS championships ever earned a larger audience than this year’s semifinals — USC/Texas in 2006 (35.6M), Alabama/Texas in 2010, Ohio State/Miami in 2003 (29.1M) and Florida/Ohio State in 2007 (28.8M).

Ratings and viewership for the Buckeyes’ Sugar Bowl upset increased 63% and 73%, respectively, from Oklahoma/Alabama last year (9.3, 16.3M) and 145% and 179% from Louisville/Florida in 2013 (6.2, 10.1M), good enough to rank as the highest rated Sugar Bowl since the 2000 BCS championship (17.5) and the most-watched since at least 1999.

The Ducks’ Rose Bowl blowout had increases of 45% in ratings and 51% in viewership from Michigan State/Stanford last year (10.2, 18.6M) and 57% and 66%, respectively, from Stanford/Wisconsin in 2013 (9.4, 17.0M). In both metrics, it was the top Rose Bowl since USC/Texas in 2006 (21.7, 35.6M). Excluding that game, the 14.8 rating is the highest for any Rose Bowl since Michigan/Washington State in 1998 (17.6).

Only one non-NFL sporting event all of last year had a larger audience than Thursday’s semifinal games — the Opening Ceremony of the Winter Olympics (31.7M). The Germany/Argentina World Cup final combined for 26.5 million on ABC and Univision. The semifinals also earned a larger audience than every game of the NCAA Tournament Final Four (both semifinals and championship games) since 1997.



(Thu. numbers from ESPN Media Zone)