First, the results of last week’s predictions.
Source: Sports Business Daily
| Sport | Game/Event | Net |
Prediction
|
Final rating
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NFL | Chargers/Steelers | NBC |
11.2
|
11.0
|
| Last Sunday night’s Chargers/Steelers game drew an 11.0 rating on NBC, up 2% from last year. | ||||
| NFL | Cowboys/Broncos or other regional action | FOX |
13.9
|
13.1
|
| The 13.1 rating for last week’s Cowboys/Broncos tilt on FOX marks a 1% increase over a 13.0 for Washington/Cowboys during Week 4 last year. | ||||
| NFL | Giants/Chiefs or other regional action | FOX |
7.7
|
7.7
|
| Regional NFL action featuring Giants/Chiefs drew a 7.7 rating on FOX last week, down 3% from a 7.9 last year, and the lowest rated NFL telecast of the season on FOX. | ||||
| NFL | Ravens/Patriots or other regional action | CBS |
8.6
|
10.1
|
| CBS drew strong ratings for its NFL singleheader last week. The 10.1 for regional coverage featuring Ravens/Patriots was up 49% from a 6.8 for comparable coverage last year. | ||||
| College football | Oklahoma/Miami or USC/Cal | ABC |
5.2
|
4.8
|
| The 4.8 rating for last week’s Oklahoma/Miami tilt on ABC was up 33% from last year, and ranks as the highest rating of the season for Saturday Night Football. | ||||
| College football | FSU/BC, Penn St./Illinois or UCLA/Stanford | ABC |
3.2
|
2.6
|
| Regional college football action on ABC last Saturday afternoon drew a 2.6 rating, down 16% from last year, and the lowest rating of the season for college football on ABC. | ||||
| College football | LSU/Georgia | CBS |
3.4
|
3.5
|
| Last Saturday’s LSU/Georgia tilt on CBS drew a 3.5 rating, up 52% from a 2.3 for Tennessee/Auburn last year. | ||||
| College football | Washington/Notre Dame | NBC |
2.3
|
2.9
|
| Notre Dame’s win over Washington last Saturday scored a 2.9 rating for NBC, up 61% from Purdue/Notre Dame last year, and the highest rated Notre Dame game since last September. | ||||
| MLB | Royals/Twins or other regional action | FOX |
1.5
|
1.2
|
| FOX ended its regular season MLB coverage with a mere 1.2 for Royals/Twins, tied as the lowest MLB rating of the season on the network. FOX averaged a 1.8 rating for 26 regular season MLB telecasts in ’09, down 10% from last year, and the lowest average ever for the MLB Game of the Week on broadcast. | ||||
| NASCAR | Price Chopper 400 | ABC |
3.3
|
3.2
|
| The 3.2 rating for last Sunday’s Price Chopper 400 was down 8% from a 3.5 last year, and marks the second-lowest rating in the 8-year history of the race. | ||||
| WNBA | Mercury/Fever Game 3 | ESPN2 |
0.32
|
0.29
|
| Game 3 of the now-completed WNBA Finals drew a 0.29 rating on ESPN2 last Sunday — the lowest rated game of the series (not including Game 5, for which ratings are not yet available). | ||||
This week’s predictions:
| Sport | Game/Event | Date/Time | Net |
Prediction
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLB | Cardinals/Dodgers Game 3 | 6 PM Saturday | TBS |
3.2
|
| After double-digit increases for the first two games, look for the potential series clincher between the Cardinals and Dodgers to see a solid boost in the ratings over last year’s comparable Phillies/Brewers Game 3 (2.9). | ||||
| MLB | Angels/Red Sox Game 3 | 12 PM Sunday | TBS |
2.4
|
| The Noon ET start for Game 3 between the Angels and Red Sox is the earliest for an MLB postseason game since ’88. Despite the early start, expect ratings to improve over the 1.5 Phillies/Brewers Game 4 drew in a comparable timeslot last year. | ||||
| MLB | Yankees/Twins Game 3 | 7 PM Sunday | TBS |
4.8
|
| The Yankees go for the series sweep on Sunday night. In ’07, Game 3 between the Yankees and Indians — also on a Sunday night — drew a 5.4 rating. Last year’s comparable Angels/Red Sox Game 3 drew a 3.9. | ||||
| MLB | Phillies/Rockies Game 3 | 10 PM Sunday | TBS |
3.3
|
| Rescheduled from Saturday due to inclement weather, Game 3 between the Phillies and Rockies gets a late start on TBS Sunday night. While the 10 PM ET start may not cater to fans on the East Coast, it is certainly better for ratings than the 2:30 PM ET starts for Games 1 and 2. With the later timeslot and the Yankees as a lead-in, expect Game 3 to easily be the highest rated of the series so far. | ||||
| NFL | Colts/Titans | 8:15 PM Sunday | NBC |
9.4
|
| With the Titans 0-4 and and the Yankees playing on TBS, look for Sunday Night Football to sink to a season low on NBC. Still, ratings should improve over the 8.8 for Steelers/Jaguars during Week 5 last season. | ||||
| NFL | Patriots/Broncos or other regional action | 4:15 PM Sunday | CBS |
14.3
|
| The Patriots are always a big draw. Look for their clash against the undefeated Broncos to give CBS strong numbers on Sunday. Last year, Bengals/Cowboys drew a 12.6. | ||||
| NFL | Raiders/Giants or other regional action | 1 PM Sunday | CBS |
7.8
|
| Do not expect blockbuster numbers for the first game of Sunday’s NFL doubleheader on CBS — which features, among others, the Raiders (1-3), Lions (1-3), Bills (1-3) and Browns (0-4). | ||||
| NFL | Cowboys/Chiefs or other regional action | 1 PM Sunday | FOX |
9.2
|
| Even against the 0-4 Chiefs and Rams, look for the Cowboys and Vikings (Brett Favre) to draw well for FOX on Sunday. | ||||
| College football | Florida/LSU | 8 PM Saturday | CBS |
5.0
|
| This battle of Top 5 SEC rivals would be a big draw no matter what, but the drama surrounding Florida QB Tim Tebow‘s health should provide an added boost for CBS on Saturday night. Last year, a primetime battle between these same teams drew a 3.8 rating on CBS; two years ago, another primetime game between the teams drew a 5.3. | ||||
| College football | Alabama/Mississippi | 3:30 PM Saturday | CBS |
2.9
|
| Expect solid numbers for the first game of Saturday’s college football doubleheader on CBS, a Top 25 battle between #3 Alabama and #20 Mississippi. | ||||
| College football | Michigan/Iowa | 8 PM Saturday | ABC |
3.6
|
| Opposite Florida/LSU on CBS, look for Saturday Night Football to stumble to its lowest rating of the season on ABC. | ||||
| College football | Wisconsin/Ohio State or other regional action | 3:30 PM Saturday | ABC |
3.3
|
| College football action featuring marquee programs Ohio State and Oklahoma should put up solid numbers on ABC Saturday afternoon. | ||||
| Golf | Presidents Cup, Final Round | 12 PM Sunday | NBC |
2.6
|
| Golf has had some major ratings momentum over the past two months. Will that continue for Sunday’s final round of the Presidents Cup? Final round coverage in ’07 drew a 2.3 rating; final round coverage in ’05 drew a 3.0. | ||||
| NASCAR | Pepsi 500 | 3:15 PM Sunday | ABC |
3.3
|
| Expect ratings for the Pepsi 500 to be on par with last year’s 3.3, when the event took place in August and aired on cable. | ||||
| NBA | Warriors/Suns | 9:30 PM Saturday | TNT |
0.7
|
| Without competition from Phillies/Rockies Game 4 on sister network TBS, Saturday night’s Warriors/Suns outdoor preseason game on TNT might attract a few more viewers. Still, opposite college football and without much in the way of promotion or interest, do not expect very good numbers. | ||||
