First, the results of last week’s predictions.
- Sunday Night Football on NBC, Washington/Colts. Prediction: 6.3. Final rating: 4.7. The NFL Hall of Fame Game finished with a sub 6.0 rating for only the second time in ten years. While the 4.7 final rating marks a 292% increase over last year’s game on the NFL Network, it is off 31% from the last time the game aired on NBC. The 4.7 rating is the lowest for the Hall of Fame Game since 1998.
- NASCAR on ESPN, Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500. Prediction: 3.6. Final rating: 3.8. Ratings were even for ESPN’s second NASCAR race of the season. The 3.8 helped NASCAR finish as the second-highest rated television program of the week on cable, behind only a new episode of The Closer on TNT.
- MLB on FOX, Angels/Yankees or other regional action. Prediction: 2.3. Final rating: 2.2. Ratings for FOX Saturday Baseball were even with last year. So far this season, FOX is averaging a 2.2 rating for 18 MLB telecasts, down only 8% from a 2.4 through the same period last year.
- X Games on ABC. Prediction: 0.9 and 1.1. Final rating: 1.0 and 1.1. Ratings for the X Games were up 25% on Saturday and even on Sunday. Overall, ABC averaged a 1.1 rating for its two-day coverage of the event, up 10% from ’07.
This week’s predictions:
- Summer Olympics on NBC, Opening Ceremonies, 7:30 PM Friday — The Beijing Olympics begin with a tape-delayed telecast of the Opening Ceremonies. In 2004, NBC drew a 14.4/26 for the Opening Ceremony, the lowest rating for the event since Barcelona in 1992. Prediction: 14.7.
- Summer Olympics on NBC, 7 PM Sunday — With the major draws, swimming and gymnastics, set to air in prime time Sunday night, expect big numbers for NBC. In ’00 and ’04, NBC drew ratings of 14.6 and 15.4, respectively, for the first Sunday night of Olympics coverage. Prediction: 16.3.
- PGA on CBS, PGA Championship, Final Round, 2 PM Sunday — The PGA Championship began without Tiger Woods and completely overshadowed by Brett Favre and the Olympics. Last year, when Woods won his second PGA Championship in a row, the final round drew a 6.2. The last time someone other than Woods won the event, the final round drew a 5.6. In ’04, the last time the event aired opposite the Olympics, it drew a 4.4. Prediction: 4.2.
- NASCAR on ESPN, Centurion Boats at The Glen, 2 PM Sunday — Look for this NASCAR race to finish dangerously close to the final round of the PGA Championship on Sunday. Last year, the Centurion Boats at the Glen drew a 3.5 rating. Prediction: 3.7.
- MLB on FOX, Yankees/Angels or other regional action, 3:30 PM Saturday — Yet again, the Yankees are appearing on FOX. This marks the third straight week the team has appeared on the network, and the second straight week they have played the Angels. Viewers eventually tire of seeing the same team over and over again. Prediction: 2.1.
