Rose Bowl Thriller Leads To Huge Nielsen Rating For ABC

ABC Nets 22.7 Overnight For Marquee Match-Up

ABC earned a 22.7 overnight Nielsen rating for last night’s Texas-USC Rose Bowl, up 54.4% from a 14.7/23 from last year’s BCS Championship game, the USC-Oklahoma FedEx Orange Bowl. The best-ever final rating for a BCS title game was a 17.8/28 for the ’01 Oklahoma-Florida State Orange Bowl. The network’s coverage of the Penn State-Florida State Orange Bowl on Tuesday drew a 12.5 overnight, up 26.3% from the comparable 9.9/15 for the Virginia Tech-Auburn Nokia Sugar Bowl last year (THE DAILY). ABC’s Orange Bowl coverage drew about 18.7 million viewers, giving the network its third consecutive nightly victory against a “number of repeats spread across the schedule.” ABC for the night ranked No. 1 in total viewers and adults 18-49 (N.Y. TIMES, 1/5). Last night's game earned a 48/74 on KVUE-ABC in Austin, translating into 282,720 HHs and "about a half-million people" in a 13-county viewing area. Viewership surpassed last year's Super Bowl in the market (AUSTIN360.com, 1/5)

BOOTH REVIEW: In L.A., Mike Penner writes ABC’s broadcast team of Keith Jackson and Dan Fouts “proved once again why it is regarded as the best in college football.” Fouts was “sharp and on point all game, and funny when warranted.” Jackson was the “right curmudgeon to oversee these proceedings.” Just before kickoff, Jackson “spoke for millions already suffering overload fatigue when he told Fouts, ... ‘I’m beginning to have a hard time swallowing’” (L.A. TIMES, 1/5). Jackson after the game said of his future as an announcer, “I really don’t know, and if I did, I’d tell you. But this would be a pretty good game to go out on.” The L.A. DAILY NEWS’ Tom Hoffarth writes Jackson “came out with his usual crisp, punctuated call. ... There was nothing blatant to show Wednesday that Jackson had lost anything from his understated, yet powerful delivery — even when he made a miscall on a PAT by Texas after its first touchdown and didn’t quite correctly read the sponsored trivia question about repeat Rose Bowl MVPs.” Jackson set up Fouts and “gave him plenty of opportunity to shine, and also provided his own analysis at the appropriate times.” In addition, sideline reporter Todd Harris “came up with plenty of pertinent information” (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 1/5). But in Austin, Alan Trubow writes Jackson “didn’t live up to his past greatness.” While Jackson “still is great at setting the scene to start the game — his opening montage was the perfect mood and tone — he doesn’t have the same flare for turning it up a notch during a game’s key moments.” Jackson “shouldn’t be broadcasting the most important games anymore” (AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 1/5).

ABC Opens Rose Bowl With A Bang

PREGAME: In Dallas, Manuel Mendoza writes “practically every pregame scene contained fireworks, figurative and literal. Explosions lined the graphics package and real ones were set off just before kickoff.” Also, actors Matthew McConaughey, a Texas alum, and Will Ferrell, a USC alum, during a pregame segment “squared off in an unfunny bit in which Ferrell pretended he couldn’t hear McConaughey because Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush’s Heisman Trophies were covering his ears” (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 1/5). But the L.A. DAILY NEWS’ Hoffarth writes the segment “fit each actor’s personality and wasn’t a forced piece of humor that can often happen in those staged pieces of entertainment” (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 1/5).

A-LIST: ABC before the game “had a list of the celebrities” in attendance and their locations. The celebrities ABC showed during the broadcast included Teri Hatcher, Jim Belushi and George Lopez –- all of whom star in ABC shows. Others showed on ABC’s game broadcast included Kobe Bryant, Mark Prior, Lance Armstrong, Nick Lachey, Henry Winkler, Dennis Quaid, LeAnn Rimes, Ferrell and McConaughey. Armstrong also appeared live on ESPN’s “College GameDay” before the game (L.A. TIMES, 1/5). James Denton, who along with Hatcher stars on ABC’s “Desperate Housewives,” was also shown several times during the game (THE DAILY).

McConaughey’s (r) Opening Piece With Will Ferrell Garners Mixed Reviews

CROSS PROMOTION: ABC’s John Saunders, who anchors the network’s pregame studio coverage, and Jackson each promoted Disney’s new deal with iTunes that offers condensed coverage of programming and games shown on ABC and ESPN. Saunders: “For the first time ever, you’re going to be able to download this national championship game to your video iPod and each of the BCS games” (ABC, 1/4).

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES: USA TODAY’s Moran & Carey report the first touchdown scored by Texas in the game, a lateral from QB Vince Young to RB Selvin Young, was not reviewed because of a “malfunctioning monitor that prevented the replay crew from seeing the necessary angles to stop play.” Young’s knee appeared to touch the ground before the lateral. NCAA National Coordinator for Football Officiating Dave Parry: “They didn’t get the time to see the views ABC provided. It should have been reviewed” (USA TODAY, 1/5).

LOOKING AHEAD: SEC Commissioner Mike Slive, who takes over as BCS Coordinator from Big 12 Commissioner Kevin Weiberg, indicated that commissioners are “concerned about the late-night finishes of BCS games,” including Tuesday night’s Orange Bowl, which ended just before 1:00am ET. Slive added that the commissioners “will attempt to influence” Fox, which will carry all the BCS games except the Rose Bowl starting next year, “to start the games earlier but doubted that would happen” (USA TODAY, 1/5). The BCS moves to a new format next year, where one bowl will host a separate national title game about a week after the other BCS games. The Fiesta Bowl will host two games next year. Retiring ABC Sports Senior VP/Programming Loren Matthews said the BCS “could be killing buzz and momentum.” Matthews: “The championship game will always be great. The question is how will those stand-alones do?” (CBS SPORTSLINE.com, 1/2).