One of the better college football rivalries was no match for the World Series.
Clemson/Florida State had a 3.6 overnight rating on the latest edition of ABC’s Saturday Night Football, down 8% from Notre Dame/Temple last year (3.9) but up 16% from Ohio State/Penn State in 2014 (3.1). Coverage aired opposite the strongest-performing Saturday night World Series game in seven years (10.5).
The 3.6 is the lowest for the Clemson/FSU rivalry since 2012 (3.2), well behind last year (5.5) and 2014 (4.9) and just a scratch behind 2013 (3.7). The game aired on Saturday Night Football in each of those years.
Despite the decline, the Tigers’ win was the top rated college football game of the weekend in the metered markets — ranking ahead of the second-place finisher, Michigan/Michigan State on ESPN (3.1).
Earlier in the day, Baylor/Texas had a 2.4 overnight — up a tick from regional action last year (2.3) but down a tick from Michigan/Michigan State in 2014 (2.5). The Noon ET regional window scored a 2.1, up 18% from Syracuse/FSU last year (1.8); there was no comparable window in 2014.
(Wknd. numbers from ESPN)
