The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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19.07 Million Television viewers on average tuned into Michigan's 30-24 win over Ohio State Nov. 25 in Ann Arbor, the most-watched edition of the rivalry since 2006, which averaged more than 21 million spectators, according to Sports Media Watch. It was the most-watched college football contest in FOX history and drew the highest viewership of any college football game since 2011, when Alabama and LSU averaged 20 million viewers. The Wolverines' victory peaked with 22.90 million viewers from 3:30-45 p.m. EST. Compared to last year's 45-23 U-M victory over Ohio State, viewership increased 11 percent from 17.14 million. TOP 10 MOST-WATCHED COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAMES IN 2023 1. Michigan-Ohio State — 19.07 million (FOX) 2. Georgia-Alabama, SEC Championship — 17.52 million (CBS) 3. Colorado-Oregon — 10.03 million (ABC) 4. Michigan-Iowa, Big Ten Championship — 10.02 million (FOX) 5. Ohio State-Notre Dame — 9.98 million (NBC) 6. Penn State-Ohio State — 9.96 million (FOX) 7. Colorado State-Colorado — 9.3 million (ESPN) 8. Oregon-Washington, Pac-12 Championship — 9.25 million (ABC) 9. LSU-Florida State — 9.17 million (ABC) 10. Michigan-Penn State — 9.16 million (FOX) Source: SportsMediaWatch.com NUMBERS AND QUOTES ❱ INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS 16 THE WOLVERINE ❱ JANUARY 2024 The worm has turned. These are the guys. I mean, these Michi- gan football players, when you look back at the history of Michigan football, wrote the book on getting the worm to turn. The worm is pretty slippery. That thing can start wiggling back and forth and turning back on you. The hook got put in it. The hook got put in the worm. They've written the book on how to do it." — Head coach JIM HARBAUGH after the Wolverines' 26-0 win over Iowa in the Big Ten championship Alabama has been one of the more resilient teams in the country. The Tide trailed five times in the second half in SEC games this season and rallied to win. In other words, they know how to win close games, and the more they've played, the more confi- dent they've become in being able to finish games. Alabama's offense isn't necessarily built to get into high-scoring showdowns and having to come back from big deficits. But if the Tide are in the game in the fourth quarter, that's their comfort zone. They don't get rattled, and [quarterback Jalen] Milroe has delivered in pressure-packed situations." — ESPN.com's Chris Low on Michigan's CFP semifinal opponent It's a heck of an honor, but our biggest mentality as a team is that we're not focused on what these rankings look like. We're focused on the last ones, and our biggest goal is going further than we did last year. We're really looking forward to this ball game, without a doubt, and we're excited for the opportunity. You can't just focus on the big prize. You've got to focus on the journey and the steps you have to take to get there. Right now, we're focused on the next game, and that next game is with Alabama. We're excited for that." — Senior defensive tackle Kris Jenkins on being ranked No. 1 and drawing Alabama in the CFP semifinal 21 Rose Bowl berths for Michigan throughout history, leading the Big Ten. The Maize and Blue haven't played in the 'Granddaddy of Them All' since a 32-18 loss to USC Jan. 1, 2006. In the first-ever Rose Bowl in 1902, Michigan beat Stanford 49-0. The Wolverines have an 8-12 record in the game. 1995-97 Was the last time Michigan beat Ohio State three straight meetings until the Wolverines did so from 2021-23. At the end of the three-year stretch in 1997, the Maize and Blue were crowned national champions with a 21-16 Rose Bowl victory over Washington State. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN