JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM
Louisiana Tech wide receiver Adrian Hardy rushes the ball ahead of Hawaii defensive lineman Kaimana Padello, left, and linebacker Scheyenne Sanitoa after a reception during the second half on Saturday.
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A change of date and time contributed to viewership for Saturday’s SoFi Hawaii Bowl skidding to at least a 13-year low.
Louisiana Tech’s 31-14 victory over the University of Hawaii on ESPN drew 1,159,000 viewers, according to Sports Media Watch, which said it was the smallest audience for the game since at least 2005.
“Considering the kickoff was late (10:34 p.m. Eastern time), we felt the SoFi Hawaii Bowl was a success when you balance the national audience viewing coupled with the game attendance (27,836),” Pete Derzis, ESPN senior vice president, college sports programming and events, said in a text.
The bowl started two hours later than previous years and was played two days earlier than its usual Christmas Eve slot after the NFL scheduled a game on Dec. 24.
In addition, scoring got off to a slow start, with UH leading just 7-3 at halftime.
It was also the last of four ESPN bowl games that day, finishing behind Army-Houston (2.57 million), Memphis-Wake Forest (2.53 million) and Buffalo-Troy (1.69 million).
Still, the game nearly doubled the Rainbow Warriors’ biggest TV audience of the season, 646,000 who saw UH’s 49-23 loss at Brigham Young in October.
The Hawaii Bowl is owned and operated by ESPN Events and Derzis said discussions are underway for a six-year extension of the contract through 2025. The game has one year remaining on its current agreement.
