How much will you watch CFB and how?

[SEIOWA CLONE]

Huge watcher of both College football and the NFL. If ISU is home, we are at the game, generally the only game I watch that day. We are 2.50 hours away, so we get home around 10:00 or so, I will stay up and watch the last part of the prime-time games and then until half of the P12 games. Generally, head to bed around midnight.

Away games I plan my day around ISU, we have direct TV, local cable, because Direct will not offer us locals or nationals any longer, and I pirate my oldest sons Hulu. I figure its fair, because he pirates my HBO and NFL season ticket package. After ISU, I generally watch the Hoks and cheer for the other team, after that, the best game that I can find. Generally, B12 or B10 games, rarely if ever watch much from the SEC and never the ACC. Then pick the best P12 game at night.
I really liked the Thursday B12 games, and the B10 Friday games if not going to a HS football game. I will turn on the MAC games during the weeknight games, but generally not paying much attention.

 

[enisthemenace]

I really wish there was a great way to hook the various services into a single UI that made discovery and flipping around so much easier. I know Apple had this idea with Apple TV+, and it works for some services, but it still sucks.

If that existed, it would make everybody's lives easier - including me with my Hulu+, Netflix, Prime, HBO Max, Apple TV+, Discovery+, Disney+, Paramount, Peacock, and ESPN+ (maybe more I'm forgetting).

I also think that those of us that enjoy Hulu, YouTube TV, Sling, etc are going to gradually see huge price increases as they get stuck with the same problem that traditional cable tv had - they can't just do add-ons that handle these huge increases in sports contracts. They're going to have to fold some into their existing packages to offset some costs and that will lead to even more prices increases than we've seen lately.

Now this is an impressive array. I mean, I have most of those, but simple due to the Hulu bundles/add ons, and because the wife has Prime.

I do like Hulu because ESPN+ is embedded, but even still, it sucks moving from one stream to another.

I actually loved DirecTV’s interface, but I just got tired of the “every 6 months” charade.

 

[Aduhbolu15]

I'm a diehard CFB fan so will watch any and all games between Wed night through late Sat night. If not a great matchup, I'd be more likely to stay on Hulu where I can flip back and forth between a few games then I am to switch between apps for similar level games.

Counter to many here, I like ESPN because I can watch it, ESPN2, Fox, CBS, etc within the same Hulu interface for ease. I also like watching the big dogs from any league (yes, even the SEC and B1G) but that seems like it will also be more fragmented.

I worry the most about a school like ISU that needs exposure and the harder that becomes for casual fans, the more it will impact things like growing the fan base, perception, recruiting, rankings, etc.

No Tuesday Night MACation?

 

[3TrueFans]

I only make a point to watch ISU games, others I’ll just watch if I’m watching tv and they’re on and interesting to me.

 

[coolerifyoudid]

I will watch ISU and then whatever other Big XII games are on that service primarily. There's usually a big drop-off after that.

I'll likely watch whatever service has the best combination of most competitive games and and number of games so I don't have to keep switching streaming services. I miss cable for the quick switching, but Hulu has been fairly sufficient.

 

[cycloneG]

I will watch ISU and then whatever other Big XII games are on that service primarily. There's usually a big drop-off after that.

I'll likely watch whatever service has the best combination of most competitive games and and number of games so I don't have to keep switching streaming services. I miss cable for the quick switching, but Hulu has been fairly sufficient.

Another vote for Hulu here. It's the best app for watching college football without having to switch between apps.

 

[BoxsterCy]

I am over serviced for what I actually watch. Have access to all the major sports networks but don't watch much more than ISU these days. And I don't build my schedule around ISU kickoffs anymore. If it's super crazy nice fall afternoon I might not automatically 86 other activities to sit and watch football.

I like that we are better but the whole college football scene has just lost some of it's luster for me. Cannot pinpoint the single or multiple things that have made it so for me but I just don't have the same interest level.

 

[JM4CY]

No Tuesday Night MACation?

I always get super excited about MACation and LOVED it in my younger years. Now, I always think “that sounds like a fun little Tuesday pick me up!” but with kids and work, my weekday nights often just get shot to hell and I never watch any of the MAC all season.

 

[Jer]

No Tuesday Night MACation?

Actually love that - forgot to add another day to an already sad display of my TV football addiction.

 

[CloniesForLife]

I will always watch ISU. Last several years I've been trending towards less CFB watching with most of my additional games being BIG12 games. I see that trend continuing. Part of it is just losing interest in CFB and part of it is not wanting to sit around inside all day during fall weekends.

I really have no desire to watch SEC, ACC or PAC football. I'm sure I'll watch a handful of BIG10 games just because I live in MN and have a lot of friends that went to various schools from the conference.

 

[madguy30]

Aside from ESPN+ I only get Sling but they took some channels off iirc so need to find something else.

I generally watch whatever's on as long as it's a good game or a non-ISU team that has caught my eye like Utah or Cincinatti last year.

 

[VeloClone]

I got murdered for this in another thread but I'm ISU only now for college fb, maybe some games that directly affect ISU.

I was trending that way anyway compared to years I'd spend entire Saturdays watching the best matchups as I did stuff around the house. Between that natural evolution and the idea of supporting entities that are trying to destroy what makes college football great, can't see myself tuning into the Mich/tOSU game or an SEC game this year even if a fun upset is brewing.

I'm not going to become more of an NFL fan (I never have been one), I'll just watch less football overall. My NFL fandom is basically looking for ISU player highlights which is cool to actually have now.

For basketball I've never watched anybody but ISU, I'll read about other games to get lay of the land but I find college basketball where I don't have the fandom built in to be pretty brutal compared to NBA basketball. Can't stand the brick rate.

I recommend you ask the MODs to change your username to The Angry Ghost of HFCS.

 

[michaelrr1]

Poll needs 0 streaming service options.

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

The industry needs to get off their dinosaurs and go all in on stream. Hell we've been saying that since I was in college and that's damn near 20 years ago.

 

[Donqluione]

ISU away games, Big12 usually if not a bottom feeder game. Probably the Hawks especially if losing/underdog, some other regional games. Very little interest in the "blueblood" games unless a score check shows someone is losing, then tune in to cheer for the underdog.

If the super conferences do result from realignment, with result pretty much being conference games only except for some sort of championship playoff, my viewership wll likely plummet. Absolutely if ISU is on the outside: even if they and the Big 12 are sort of on the inside, lack of common opponents as measuring sticks will lower myour interest. If the super conferences come to dominate recruiting as logic suggests, and become NFL AAA, I won't care at all, just MAYBE watch the playoffs if nothing else is on, just like I do the NBA. And MLB has moved to the same model. Regular season games are almost meaningless, just another reality TV format, why bother.

Undesireable evolution IMO, serious dilution of the product. Used to be "don't miss it" stuff, although the massive content competition also plays a huge role.

 

[jctisu]

The industry needs to get off their dinosaurs and go all in on stream. Hell we've been saying that since I was in college and that's damn near 20 years ago.

They will only do it once it equals out to or becomes more profitable than OTA. Still a ways to go there. Notre Dame had a game on Peacock (yes it was against Toledo) and nobody watched it. Does anyone have that number because it was said to be insanely bad? And that’s Notre Dame of all teams plus it was a good game that Notre Dame snuck out a W.

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

They will only do it once it equals out to or becomes more profitable than OTA. Still a ways to go there. Notre Dame had a game on Peacock (yes it was against Toledo) and nobody watched it. Does anyone have that number because it was said to be insanely bad? And that’s Notre Dame of all teams plus it was a good game that Notre Dame snuck out a W.

Ya old people need to get with the program. Evolve or die.

 

[CnG]

I will not add to the B1G or SEC war chest by watching their games, or by subscribing to the streaming services that broadcast them. Big 12, Pac12 and ACC for me.

 

[NickTheGreat]

I watch every ISU game, and will do what it takes to do so. Probably sign up for whichever service for a few months.

I will not jump through many hoops to watch any other team. I like college FB, but I don't have enough free time to spend it watching Rutgers vs Northwestern or Vandy vs Kentucky.

I'll turn on the evening games after the kids go to bed. But at that point, it's generally PAC12 football, or a rerun of the Office. And lot of times it's a bit of a tossup!

 

[jctisu]

Ya old people need to get with the program. Evolve or die.

I am not old in any way and all my friends aren’t either. But they still only stream the team they want to watch if that’s the only way to watch them. The casual fans that make the networks the big bucks are still OTA. That could and likely will change years from now but it might also just be that sports viewership drops in general as the 60 and older crowd dies off. People 30 and under are not watching college sports especially like they used to but it’s virtually down across the board for every sport by double digit percentages.

The youth is into social media and mindless things like TikTok and the like to get their fix and release from reality. The data is out there, so we shall see how that trend goes over the next 20 years.