For the second time in three weeks, Alabama against a Top Ten team was not enough to help the SEC on CBS win its timeslot.
The Alabama/Texas A&M college football game drew a 3.6 overnight rating on CBS Saturday afternoon, down 5% from Auburn/Mississippi last year (3.8) but up 6% from Florida/LSU in 2013 (3.4). Despite the slight decline, the 3.6 overnight is the second-highest of the season for the SEC on CBS — trailing only Alabama/Georgia two weeks earlier (4.2).
Head-to-head, Alabama’s blowout win trailed competing coverage of Michigan State/Michigan on ESPN (5.1). Twice this season has a seemingly blockbuster Alabama matchup trailed Big Ten action on ESPN/ABC; the previously mentioned Alabama/Georgia game was topped by an ABC regional window that featured Ohio State/Indiana.
It should be noted that Alabama’s relative ease in those games did not help matters. The Tide won by 28 against favored Georgia and by 18 against A&M, while the competing Big Ten games were decided on the last possession.
Saturday marked the sixth time in seven weeks this season that the SEC on CBS has failed to top the charts, after having done so nine times in 13 weeks last year.
(Wknd. numbers via ShowBuzz Daily)
