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South Carolina football among Nielsen's most-watched teams in 2025

Screenshotby: Kevin Miller3 hours agokevinmillerGC
LaNorris Sellers (Photo by Katie Dugan/GamecockCentral)
LaNorris Sellers (Photo by Katie Dugan/GamecockCentral)

The 2025 season has not gone the way that South Carolina football fans had hoped it would. Despite preseason College Football Playoff hype, the Gamecocks are 3-6 through nine games. However, the Gamecock Faithful remain an elite group.

South Carolina fans have continued to pack out Williams-Brice Stadium for home games, and according to a recent update from the Nielsen Ratings, the Gamecocks are also one of the most-watched college football teams on television.

Heading into this weekend’s slate of games, South Carolina has been the No. 13 most-watched team in the country.

You can see Nielsen’s overall top 15 below (season-long viewership average in parentheses).

  1. Alabama Crimson Tide (7.865 million average viewers)
  2. Tennessee Volunteers (7.032 million average viewers)
  3. Georgia Bulldogs (6.996 million average viewers)
  4. Texas Longhorns (6.479 million average viewers)
  5. LSU Tigers (6.420 million average viewers)
  6. Oklahoma Sooners (6.067 million average viewers)
  7. Ohio State Buckeyes (5.752 million average viewers)
  8. Florida Gators (5.674 million average viewers)
  9. Florida State Seminoles (4.916 million average viewers)
  10. Ole Miss Rebels (4.645 million average viewers)
  11. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4.450 million average viewers)
  12. Michigan Wolverines (4.143 million average viewers)
  13. South Carolina Gamecocks (4.122 million average viewers)
  14. Miami Hurricanes (4.017 million average viewers)
  15. Penn State Nittany Lions (3.981 million average viewers)

The Insiders Forum: Discuss South Carolina football!

The Nielsen Ratings, for those unaware, are known as America’s “leader in audience measurement for live sports.”

South Carolina’s matchup against Alabama several weeks ago was the most-watched game of that week with an average of 7.8 million viewers. Carolina fans helped reach that number, even though the game was played in October, historically the least-watched month of the college football season.

The Gamecocks’ average viewership this year is higher than several really prominent programs. Despite Carolina’s sub-optimal record, USC ranks higher than College Football Playoff-bound teams like Indiana, Texas A&M, and Oregon.

Adding to the feat, of the top 15, only four teams hail from states with smaller populations than South Carolina. The Gamecocks are ninth overall in the SEC.

With three games left on the schedule, including one against an SEC opponent and one against the rival Clemson Tigers, there is room for upward mobility for the Gamecocks before the end of the season.

The Insiders Forum: Discuss South Carolina football!