Colorado's viewership falls 10X from the initial 7M mark as Coach Prime's team fails to break their losing streak

Colorado was perhaps the biggest buzz before the start of the 2023 college football season, having begun their season under famous cornerback Deion Sanders' guidance. The program also saw a complete overhaul of the roster as Coach Prime attracted a lot of athletes to Boulder.

This did not stop at the start of the college football season, as the team began to record massive attendance at Folsom Field and high television ratings beyond many other teams.

Colorado has an estimated 7–10 million viewers in each of its first five games of the season. However, the numbers have been falling significantly in the last couple of weeks, with only 700,000 fans watching the team's blowout loss to Washington State in Week 12.

Colorado TV numbers and the massive drop

While Colorado is not considered a big program in the world of college football, the influence Deion Sanders brought to Boulder is unimaginable. The program gained significant attention across the country, making it one of the most talked about among fans and media.

The Buffaloes' first five games of the season featured in the top 10 most-watched games in the ongoing college football season. Their opening game against national championship runners-up TCU in Fort Worth, which was broadcast on Fox, recorded a massive 7.26 million viewers.

The team's second game was against Nebraska, and the TV numbers grew even bigger. A total of 8.73 million people watched the Buffaloes' first home game of the season on Fox, which Sanders tagged "personal." The third game against Colorado State even saw the numbers rise further, with a total of 9.3 million viewers on ESPN.

The trend continued in the fourth game against Oregon in Eugene, with 10.03 million people tuning in on ABC. This is the most-watched game of the season. The loss to the Ducks probably made the numbers drop in the fifth game against USC, which saw 7.24 million viewers.

However, since losing to the Trojans, Colorado has witnessed a significant drop in its television rating, and the trend has continued due to the Buffaloes' abysmal form. They've only recorded one win since the loss to Oregon in Week 4, which is their only win in conference play so far.

This season, it did not obviously turn out as Deion Sanders would have anticipated. However, there's a chance for redemption next season as the Buffaloes look to get better when they transition to the Big 12.