ESPN averaged a 9.4 rating and 16.6 million viewers for the five BCS bowl game telecasts this season, up 7% and 10%, respectively, from an 8.8 rating and 15.1 million viewers last year. The five-game average also was up 12% and 18%, respectively, from ’12. Monday night’s Florida State-Auburn Vizio National Championship game finished with a 14.4 rating and 25.6 million viewers, marking the third-largest audience in cable TV history, behind only the BCS title games from ’11 (Auburn-Oregon) and ’13 (Alabama-Notre Dame). This year’s audience is down 5% and 3%, respectively, from a 15.1 rating and 26.4 million viewers from Dame last year. Including audience figures from the BCS "Megacast" on ESPN2 and ESPNews, the BCS title game delivered a 14.8 rating and 26.1 million viewers (Austin Karp, Assistant Managing Editor).
| VIEWERSHIP TREND FOR FIVE BCS GAME TELECASTS |
| YEAR | NETWORK(S) | RATING | VIEWERS (000) |
| '14 | ESPN | 9.4 | 16,589 |
| '13 | ESPN | 8.8 | 15,131 |
| '12 | ESPN | 8.4 | 14,018 |
| '11 | ESPN | 9.6 | 16,729 |
| '10 | Fox/ABC | 10.9 | 19,278 |
| '09 | Fox/ABC | 10.3 | 17,595 |
| '08 | Fox/ABC | 9.4 | 15,554 |
| '07 | Fox/ABC | 11.1 | 18,123 |
| | | | |
| BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP AUDIENCE TREND |
| YEAR | DAY | MATCHUP | NETWORK | RATING | VIEWERS (000) |
| '14 | Mon. | Florida State-Auburn | ESPN | 14.4 | 25,572 |
| '13 | Mon. | Alabama-Notre Dame | ESPN | 15.1 | 26,380 |
| '12 | Mon. | Alabama-LSU | ESPN | 14.0 | 24,214 |
| '11 | Mon. | Auburn-Oregon | ESPN | 15.3 | 27,316 |
| '10 | Thurs. | Alabama-Texas | ABC | 17.2 | 30,776 |
| '09 | Thurs. | Florida-Oklahoma | Fox | 15.8 | 26,767 |
| '08 | Mon. | LSU-Ohio State | Fox | 14.4 | 23,069 |
| '07 | Mon. | Florida-Ohio State | Fox | 17.4 | 28,795 |
| '06 | Wed. | Texas-USC (Rose Bowl) | ABC | 21.7 | 35,630 |
| '05 | Tues. | USC-Oklahoma (Orange Bowl) | ABC | 13.7 | 21,419 |
| '04 | Sun. | LSU-Oklahoma (Sugar Bowl) | ABC | 14.8 | 23,937 |
| '03 | Fri. | Ohio State-Miami (Fiesta Bowl) | ABC | 17.2 | 29,104 |
| '02 | Thurs. | Miami-Nebraska (Rose Bowl) | ABC | 13.8 | 21,559 |
| '01 | Wed. | Oklahoma-Florida State (Orange Bowl) | ABC | 17.8 | 27,240 |
| '00 | Tues. | Florida State-Virginia Tech (Sugar Bowl) | ABC | 17.5 | 26,962 |
| '99 | Mon. | Tennessee-Florida State (Fiesta Bowl) | ABC | 17.2 | 26,112 |
| | | | | | |
AN UNLIKELY STAR? ESPN's Michael Wilbon noted Alabama coach Nick Saban was "great" during his guest analyst appearances around the BCS title game and said, "A star is born." Wilbon acknowledged Saban likely "will never even get to a TV career because he doesn't need it," but asked, "How great is he to listen to? Wonderful to listen to." Wilbon: "Saban, who is so irritating sometimes as a coach, is so great as a broadcaster. He brings up things that no one could think of other than a great coach" ("PTI," ESPN, 1/7).
HE'S STILL GOT IT: In California, Steve Fryer writes ESPN's Brent Musburger has had "a couple of awkward moments on BCS title game telecasts, like the excessive gushing"
over Katherine Webb last year. But Musburger "did a smooth job Monday night, making a very difficult job look easy." The 74-year-old Musburger "sounds as good as he did 30 years ago" (
ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 1/8).
