Weekend ratings predictions.

First, the results of last week’s predictions.

Monday Night Football, Cowboys/Eagles (9/15). Prediction: 8.6. Final rating: 11.3. Cowboys/Eagles was not only the most watched television program in the history of cable, but the 11.3 national rating was better than all six games of June’s NBA Finals, three out of four games from last year’s World Series, and four of the five BCS bowl games.
NFL on CBS, Steelers/Eagles. Prediction: 13.4. Final rating: 12.0. CBS did not draw a mammoth audience for Steelers/Eagles, but the 12.0 rating was up 7% from an 11.2 for Giants/Washington in ’07.
Sunday Night Football on NBC, Cowboys/Packers. Prediction: 12.9. Final rating: 13.3. The 13.3 for Cowboys/Packers marked a 13% increase from Cowboys/Bears last year, and is the fourth-highest rated Sunday Night Football telecast ever on NBC.
Golf on NBC, Ryder Cup (Sunday). Prediction: 2.6. Final rating: 2.9. The 2.9 rating for Sunday afternoon coverage of the Ryder Cup marks a 12% increase from a 2.7 for coverage in ’06, which aired in the morning.
College football on ABC, regional. Prediction: 3.0. Final rating: 3.3. Ratings for ABC’s early college football telecast dropped 11% from the comparable Penn State/Michigan game last year.
Saturday Night Football on ABC, Georgia/Arizona State. Prediction: 3.4. Final rating: 2.7. A week after Ohio State/USC drew massive ratings, Georgia/Arizona State commanded a far smaller audience. The 2.7 final rating for Saturday Night Football marks a 16% drop from the 3.2 for regional action last year.
SEC on CBS, Florida/Tennessee. Prediction: 3.1. Final rating: 2.7. The 2.7 final rating for this SEC battle marks a 4% increase from a 2.6 for South Carolina/LSU in ’07.
College football on ESPN, LSU/Auburn. Prediction: 2.8. Final rating: 3.5. ESPN drew strong ratings for this rivalry game last Saturday. The 3.5 final rating was the highest of the weekend for any college football game on broadcast or cable.
MLB on FOX, regional. Prediction: 1.8. Final rating: 1.7. The 1.7 final rating for the penultimate regular season baseball game on FOX was off 6% from a 1.8 on the comparable day last year. Through 25 telecasts, FOX is averaging a 2.0 rating for MLB telecasts, down 13% from a 2.3 last year.

This week’s predictions:

Sunday Night Football on NBC, Eagles/Bears, 8:15 PM Sunday — This battle between the #3 and #4 markets in the country figures to draw good numbers on NBC Sunday. Last year, the comparable Eagles/Giants game drew a 9.4. Prediction: 9.7.
NFL on FOX, Washington/Cowboys, 4:15 PM Sunday — Two weeks ago, the Cowboys were involved in the most watched cable program ever. Last week, their game against the Packers was the fourth highest rated Sunday nighter on NBC. Will FOX reap similar rewards this week? Prediction: 14.0.
MLB on FOX, regional, 3:30 PM Saturday — FOX has a slate of meaningful late season match-ups on tap for Saturday, but skipping out on Marlins/Mets in favor of Yankees/Red Sox may hurt the network in the ratings. Not only did Yankees/Red Sox have no bearing whatsoever on the playoff race, but the game was postponed due to rain. Prediction: 1.9.
College football on ESPN, Alabama/Georgia, 7:45 PM Saturday — For the second straight week, ESPN will air a highly anticipated SEC match-up. With Alabama and Georgia both ranked in the top 10, expect a large audience for what on paper looks like the biggest college football game of the weekend. Prediction: 3.9.
Notre Dame Football on NBC, Purdue/Notre Dame, 3:30 PM Saturday — Ratings have improved for Notre Dame games on NBC, but with the team coming off a loss to Michigan State last week, could that improvement be short lived? Prediction: 2.6.
Saturday Night Football on ABC, regional, 8 PM Saturday — With neither Illinois/Penn State nor Va. Tech/Nebraska looking like marquee match-ups, look for a second straight week of sub-3.0 ratings for Saturday Night Football. Prediction: 2.9.
PGA on NBC, The Tour Championship, 1:30 PM Sunday — The FedEx Cup comes to a merciful end on Sunday. After sharp declines in ratings for the first three tournaments, do not expect anything different for The Tour Championship. Last year, the final round drew a 3.0/7. Prediction: 1.7.
NASCAR on ABC, Camping World RV 400, 2 PM Sunday — ABC continues to put up low numbers for NASCAR coverage, but ratings are up slightly from last year. Through two races, ABC is averaging a 3.6 for NASCAR’s Chase for the Cup, up 4% from a 3.4 through the first two Chase races last year. Look for this week’s race to also see a slight bump; the comparable race last year drew a 3.1. Prediction: 3.3.