Auburn-Oregon Could Set Cable TV Records

It took Auburn every last second during last night’s Tostitos BCS National Championship Game to claim the school’s first title in 53 years, and ESPN stands to benefit from the early-morning drama. Auburn’s 22-19 win over Oregon draws a 16.1 overnight Nielsen rating, the largest overnight for any cable broadcast ever. Should the final ratings remain the same, the game will top the “MNF” game from ’09 featuring Brett Favre's first game against the Packers. Still, the gap between broadcast and cable remains noticeable -- Auburn-Oregon is down more than 11% from the overnight for Alabama’s win over Texas in last year's championship game on ABC. Critics of college football’s postseason remain outspoken, but BCS Exec Dir Bill Hancock stands firm in his belief that a playoff will not be implemented any time soon. Hancock says, “I will stand here and tell you this system works.”