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TV viewer numbers for the UCF Knights’ 34-7 win over the South Florida Bulls on Black Friday night was slightly up from last year’s version of War on I-4. This year’s game, which kicked off at 7 p.m., was watched by 1.758 million viewers compared to last year’s game in Tampa, which started at 4 p.m. and pulled 1.741 million viewers.
It is the 2nd-most watched War on I-4 game ever behind the 2017 classic, which it did 4.7 million viewers on ABC. It is also the 4th game between the two schools that has drawn more than a million viewers.
All-time War on I-4 TV Viewer Numbers
- South Florida at UCF (11/24/2017) - 4.7 million (ABC, 3:30 p.m. ET)
- South Florida at UCF (11/29/2019) - 1.758 million (ESPN Primetime)
- UCF at South Florida (11/23/2018) - 1.741 million (ESPN, 4:15 p.m. ET)
- South Florida at UCF (11/29/2013) - 1.220 million (ESPN Primetime)
The Bulls-Knights game was down significantly from the identical primetime slot on ESPN last year, which featured Oklahoma at West Virginia (5.63 million viewers) and the previous year between Virginia Tech and Virginia (2.14 million viewers).
Here are UCF’s TV ratings so far this year:
UCF Football 2019 TV Viewership Numbers
| Game | Network | Time Slot (ET) | Viewers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game | Network | Time Slot (ET) | Viewers |
| UCF at Pittsburgh | ABC/ESPN2 | 3:30 p.m. | 2.55 million |
| South Florida at UCF | ESPN | 8 p.m. | 1.758 million |
| UCF at Cincinnati | ESPN | 8 p.m. (Friday) | 1.44 million |
| Stanford at UCF | ESPN | 3:30 p.m. | 967,000 |
| UCF at Tulsa | ESPN2 | 7 p.m. (Friday) | 787,000 |
| Houston at UCF | ESPN2 | Noon | 736,000 |
| UConn at UCF | ESPN2 | 7 p.m. | 322,000 |
| UCF at Temple | ESPN2 | 7 p.m. | 277,000 |
UCF also accounts for four of the top ten most-watched American Athletic Conference football games in 2019, more than any other team in the league.
Top Ten Most-Watched AAC Football Games in 2019
| Game | Date | Network | Time Slot (ET) | Viewers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game | Date | Network | Time Slot (ET) | Viewers |
| SMU at Memphis | Saturday, November 2 | ABC | 8 p.m. | 2.95 million |
| Cincinnati at Memphis | Friday, November 29 | ABC | 3:30 p.m. | 2.51 million |
| South Florida at UCF | Friday, November 29 | ESPN | 8 p.m. | 1.758 million |
| UCF at Cincinnati | Friday, October 4 | ESPN | 8 p.m. | 1.44 million |
| Houston at Tulane | Thursday, September 19 | ESPN | 8 p.m. | 1.03 million |
| UCF at Tulsa | Friday, November 8 | ESPN2 | 7 p.m. | 787,000 |
| SMU at Houston | Thursday, October 24 | ESPN | 7:30 p.m. | 769,000 |
| Navy at UConn | Friday, November 1 | ESPN2 | 7 p.m. | 742,000 |
| Houston at UCF | Saturday, November 2 | ESPN2 | Noon | 736,000 |
| Navy at Memphis | Thursday, September 26 | ESPN | 8 p.m. | 730,000 |