Winning in the Big 12 is Giving BYU the TV Exposure They Craved

The 2025 BYU football team might have been the most viewed BYU team of the modern era

BYU defensive line in the Pop-Tarts Bowl | BYU Photo

Last week, BYU wrapped up the 2025 season with win over Georgia Tech in the Pop-Tarts Bowl. The Cougars finished the 2025 campaign with a 12-2 record, and it was the first time BYU had won 12 games in a single season since 2001. BYU is now 23-4 over the last two seasons.

BYU's success has elevated BYU's exposure and brand in an unprecedented way. Remember, when BYU went independent way back in 2012, exposure was one of the core reasons for leaving the Mountain West and signing a deal with ESPN. Now that BYU is winning in the Big 12, BYU's TV viewership is reaching the levels that BYU always craved.

Here at BYU On SI, we have tracked television ratings dating back to the start of the independence era. Three of BYU's four most viewed games since 2012 were played in the back half of the 2025 season. For that reason, it's very likely that the 2025 BYU football team was the most viewed BYU football team of the modern era.

It's also worth noting that all four of BYU's most viewed games since 2012 have been played over the last 13 months. Here are the 10 most viewed BYU football games since 2012:

1. 2025 Big 12 Championship Game (Texas Tech) - 8.99M viewers
2. 2025 Pop-Tarts Bowl - 8.70M viewers
3. 2024 Colorado - 8.00M viewers
4. 2025 Texas Tech - 3.98M viewers
5. 2013 Washington - 3.75M viewers
6. 2012 Notre Dame - 3.70M viewers
7. 2015 Utah - 3.68M viewers
8. 2016 Michigan State - 3.25M viewers
9. 2021 UAB - 3.22M viewers
10. 2019 Washington - 3.15M viewers
11. 2015 Nebraska - 3.13M viewers

Back in the independence era, any game exceeding three million viewers would have ranked in the top 10. Over the last 13 months, BYU has played in three games that averaged 8 million or more viewers throughout.

A record-setting audience watched BYU take down Georgia Tech in the Pop-Tarts Bowl. BYU-Georgia Tech averaged 8.7 million viewers, the second most of any BYU game in the modern era behind only the Big 12 championship game. According to ESPN PR, it was most viewers for a non-CFP bowl game since the 2019 Citrus Bowl.

Thru Dec. 27, @ESPNCFB's non-CFP bowl viewership is up 13%, averaging 2.7M viewers with several games reaching multi-year highs
 
🏈 @PopTartsBowl | 8.7M viewers⁰🏈 @PinstripeBowl | 7.6M⁰🏈 @taxslayerbowl | 6.0M⁰🏈 @RateBowl | 4.4M⁰🏈 @LABowlGame | 3.8M⁰🏈 @FRBowl | 3.1M pic.twitter.com/AH0LfKYINz

— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) January 2, 2026

This is the second consecutive year that BYU has played in most viewed non-CFP bowl game. Last year's BYU-Colorado game was the largest tv audience in the 33-year history of the Alamo Bowl, and the most viewed non-CFP bowl since the 2019 Citrus Bowl. BYU broke that record in a different bowl game and against a different opponent just one year later.

According to BYU associate director of communications Duff Tittle, last year's Alamo Bowl was believed to be the second most watched BYU game ever. In 1953, BYU played Utah in a game that was believed to be watched by more than 60 million people.

Growing BYU's brand is one of the most important long-term goals in the athletic department. BYU's tv viewership has accelerated the growth of BYU's brand over the last two years.