ESPN on Saturday drew a 1.7 overnight rating for the Heisman Trophy ceremony from 8:00-9:15pm ET, marking what could be the least-viewed Heisman presentation on record. Louisville QB Lamar Jackson became the youngest winner of the award, but his predictable win helped drive down ratings. The 1.7 overnight is down 15% from a 2.0 rating for former Alabama RB Derrick Henry's win last year, and down from a 2.0 rating for Oregon QB Marcus Mariota's win in '14. Florida State QB Jameis Winston's landslide win in '13 drew a 2.7 overnight. Meanwhile, ESPN following the ceremony from 9:15-11:15pm drew a 1.4 overnight for its most recent "30 for 30" film, "Catholics vs. Convicts." The rating for the documentary around the old Notre Dame-Miami matchups is the best for a post-Heisman film since "Youngstown Boys" drew a 1.5 overnight following the '13 ceremony (Austin Karp, Assistant Managing Editor).
SECRET GARDEN: CBSSPORTS.com's Jon Solomon wrote the Heisman ceremony "never learned a cardinal lesson in entertainment: The more seriously you take yourself, the more you get mocked." Starting in '13, the Heisman "forced voters to pledge they would not reveal their picks in advance." About 50 voters got letters in '13 "admonishing them for revealing their ballots." The voters "were told if they didn't agree to hide their Heisman ballots, voting privileges would be up for review." Solomon: "A funny thing happened since 2013: Heisman TV ratings plummeted. ... Imagine that. Ratings drop without free publicity from media members explaining their ballots during Heisman week" (CBSSPORTS.com, 12/9).
