That pair, and others like it, became part of notable trend in the 2024-25 bowl season: 21 of the 30 non-Playoff bowls that aired on an ESPN network through Jan. 2 saw year-over-year viewership increases, the majority of them by 20 percent or more.

Now that the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff is down to four teams remaining — the size of the field the previous 10 seasons — things really don't look that much different. The final quartet includes two teams from the Big Ten,