While more than a decade’s worth of cord-cutting has resulted in an inevitable decline in traditional television ratings, there’s seemingly always been one exception to that trend: football.

Total viewership for the Super Bowl has increased in each of the past three seasons, peaking (for now) with last year’s matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers averaging a record 123.4 million viewers across all platforms. College football, meanwhile, has been more static. But last year’s College Football Playoff Championship Game between Michigan and Washington averaged more than 25 million total viewers, the most for a national title game since the end of the 2019 season.

Even this past fall saw high marks in various forms at both levels. And while the league’s overall ratings were slightly down year over year, nearly half (45) of the 100 most-watched primetime telecasts in 2024 were NFL games.

Fewer and fewer people might be watching TV these days, but all indications are that more and more people are watching football.

Or, at least they were.

While it seems like every press release regarding football ratings in recent memory has touted some version of a new record high, that hasn’t been the case in recent weeks. Ratings for the NFL’s Wild Card Round were largely down year over year, while Sunday’s two Divisional Round matchups posted a four-year low. And although the College Football Playoff’s ratings dip in the semifinals round could easily be explained by the games no longer being played on the New Year’s Day holiday, the same couldn’t be said for the sport’s championship game.

If ever there was a matchup to exploit America’s thirst for football, one would it expect it to be a national title game between Notre Dame and Ohio State; two historic, high profile programs with national appeal. And yet, the Buckeyes’ victory over the Fighting Irish on Monday averaged “just” 22.1 million viewers, an inarguably underwhelming number considering the parties involved and greater context of the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff.

If the ratings for the semifinals — which featured Notre Dame vs. Penn State and Ohio State vs. Texas — raised red flags, then the national title game’s ratings set off fire alarms. What does it say about America’s current appetite for football if a national championship game between two of the sport’s most historic programs is drawing a disappointing number?

Explanations and/or excuses quickly followed, many of which likely contributed to the national title game’s lackluster rating in some form.

Two Midwest teams could only reach a limited audience. ESPN didn’t do a good enough job marketing the game. Ohio State’s 31-7 lead led to an early mass exodus of viewers. It was Inauguration Day, as well as a holiday. And why is college football’s national championship still being played on a Monday night?

Again, all of these factors likely played at least some role in Monday night’s rating. But they also underscore what may very well be the biggest reason why Ohio State vs. Notre Dame didn’t draw better: We simply have too much football.

Not only did the expanded College Football Playoff mean moving from three games to 11, but it also meant stretching the format from two weeks to more than four. College football held the bulk of its conference championship games on Dec. 7 and played its national championship game on Jan. 20, creating a more than six-week stretch in which its fanbase is expected to invest in its postseason without even factoring the sport’s other bowl games and the busyness of the holiday season.

I think none of these are the reason why.

1) the game was roughly 60 days after the end of the regular season. Wild for a single elimination tournament to last that long. The NFL played two playoff weekends between semi finals and champ game
2) Finishing up number 1… the game… https://t.co/hkyv1dkQTY

— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) January 23, 2025

That’s also without considering the realities of the NFL, whose own playoff now overlaps with college football’s. Monday night’s championship wasn’t just the end of a six-week stretch of postseason play for college football, but it also followed the two days comprising the NFL’s Divisional Round and came a week after both sports combined for five consecutive days of playoff football.

Dating back to Notre Dame’s playoff-opening matchup against Indiana on Dec. 20, college football and the NFL have combined to play 21 playoff games, 13 of which were played between Jan. 9 and the national title game on Jan. 20. No matter how you spin it, that’s a lot of football in a short amount of time. And it’s also worth noting that the CFP’s month-long stretch also coincided with the final three weeks of the NFL’s regular season.

Even for the most diehard of fans, football fatigue by this point isn’t just understandable — it’s be expected. And while it’s very well possible (if not likely) that the NFL will return to form in its conference championship games and next month’s Super Bowl, the fact that the divisional round already saw a dip is telling.

So what’s the solution?

Although the first-ever College Football Playoff was largely considered a success — disappointing final rating and all — most would agree that there are glaring issues with the format. And while adjusting the seeding might be most obvious fix for the CFP to make, it would also behoove the the postseason’s decision-makers to consider its calendar.

Despite obstacles such as the placement of the Army-Navy game and the Rose Bowl’s affinity for New Year’s Day, the reality is that there’s no reason for the College Football Playoff to last as long as it currently does. Requiring fans to adjust their own calendars and viewing habits for more than a month ultimately proved to be a bigger ask for college football fans than most imagined it would — especially when most are already doing so to accommodate the NFL.

Whether the CFP will be willing to make such changes remains to be seen, but don’t expect any significant adjustments until the postseason’s current contract expires following the 2025 season. In the meantime, we’ll monitor to see whether America’s apparent football fatigue carries into the NFL’s conference championship before a much-needed one-week break — sorry, Pro Bowl — before Super Bowl LIX.