Maryland’s upset of Texas was no match for the same matchup last year; the SEC on CBS got off to a so-so start; Sunday Night Baseball ratings took an unsurprising hit.
Maryland-Texas Down Big From Same Matchup Last Year
Rounding out the weekend action on Fox Sports, UTSA-Arizona State had just 234,000 viewers — down 46% from last year (Montana State-Washington State: 436K) and down 68% from 2016 (BYU-Arizona: 728K).
SEC on CBS Has So-So Start
West Virginia-Tennessee scored a 1.6 rating and 2.65 million viewers on the season premiere of the SEC on CBS, down 16% in ratings and 15% in viewership from 2016 (UCLA-Texas A&M: 1.9, 3.11M). The network did not carry a week one game last year. Compared to last year’s TCU-Arkansas season opener, which aired in week two, ratings increased a tick and viewership 13% from a 1.5 and 2.35 million.
All of the week one college football ratings are available here.
Angels-Astros Down Big From Last Year’s Sox-Yanks
Angels-Astros scored a 0.6 rating and 975,000 viewers on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball last weekend, down an unsurprising 50% in both measures from Red Sox-Yankees last year (1.2, 2.0M) but flat and up 3% respectively from 2016 (Nationals-Mets: 0.6, 947K).
The game was an exception on an otherwise solid holiday weekend, with four of six nationally televised windows up. Yankees-A’s scored 839,000 viewers on ESPN Labor Day, up 22% from last year (Cubs-Pirates: 687K) and up 29% from 2016 (Cardinals-Pirates: 651K). Red Sox-Braves had 681,000 earlier in the day (+20%).
On TBS, Cubs-Phillies scored a 0.30 rating and 455,000 viewers (+57%) Sunday afternoon. FS1 posted mixed results for its Saturday doubleheader, with a 0.28 and 421,000 (+16%) for Tigers-Yankees and 257,000 viewers for Indians-Rays (-31%).
