They may not have been playing each other, but Ohio State and USC still move the needle.
Saturday Night Football, featuring Ohio State/Wisconsin and USC/Oregon, drew a 4.8 overnight rating on ABC Saturday night, up 45% from a 3.3 for comparable regional coverage in ’07. The 4.8 is the second-biggest overnight of the season for Saturday Night Football, behind only the Trojans and Buckeyes’ head-to-head matchup on September 13.
ABC did not fare as well with the first game of its doubleheader. Early game coverage, featuring the Florida State’s win over Miami, drew a 3.6 overnight rating, down 28% from a 5.0 for the comparable game last year.
In other college football ratings news, CBS drew a 2.4/6 overnight for its coverage of Kentucky/Alabama on Saturday, even with last year’s Georgia/Tennessee matchup.
Overnight ratings for Saturday Night Football.
(2008 season)
8.4: Ohio State/USC (Sat., 9/13, 8 PM ABC)
4.8: Ohio St./Wisconsin or USC/Oregon (Sat., 10/5, 8 PM ABC)
4.0: Alabama/Clemson (Sat., 8/30, 8 PM ABC)
3.6: Va. Tech/Nebraska or Illinois/Penn St. (Sat., 9/27, 8 PM ABC)
3.1: Georgia/Arizona State (Sat., 9/20, 8 PM ABC)
