BCS
Updated: February 28, 2011, 5:47 PM ET

TV ratings

A look at the BCS TV ratings through the years:

2010-11 Bowl Game TV Ratings

BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING ATTEND.
Bowl Games
Championship Oregon-Auburn
 15.29
 78,603
Fiesta Connecticut-Oklahoma
 6.15
 67,232
Orange
Stanford-Virginia Tech
 6.75
 65,453
Rose Wisconsin-TCU
 11.26
 94,118
Sugar Ohio State-Arkansas
 8.20
 73,879
Other Bowls
Alamo
Oklahoma State-Arizona
 3.29
 57,593
Armed Forces
Army-SMU
 1.55
 36,742
BBVA Compass
Pittsburgh-Kentucky
 2.56
 41,207
Beef O'Brady's
Louisville-Southern Miss
 2.29
 20,017
Capital One
Michigan State-Alabama
 3.69
 61,519
Champs Sports
N.C. State-West Virginia
 2.47
 48,962
Chick-fil-A
Florida State-S. Carolina
 5.02
 72,217
Cotton
LSU-Texas A&M
 5.81
 83,518
Fight Hunger
Boston College-Nevada
 1.87
 41,063
Gator
Michigan-Mississippi State
 1.71
 68,325
GoDaddy.com
Miami (Ohio)-Mid. Tenn State
 2.03
 38,168
Hawaii
Tulsa-Hawaii
 2.45
 43,673
Holiday
Washington-Nebraska
 4.04
 57,921
Humanitarian
N. Illinois-Fresno State
 2.13
 25,449
Independence
Air Force-Georgia Tech
 1.68
 39,362
Insight
Missourio-Iowa
 2.24
 53,453
Las Vegas
Boise State-Utah
 3.78
 41,923
Liberty
Central Florida-Georgia
 3.44
 51,231
Little Caesars
Fla. International-Toldeo
 1.63
 32,431
Meineke Car Care
South Florida-Clemson
 2.30
 41,122
Military
Maryland-East Carolina
 1.72
 38,062
Music City
North Carolina-Tennessee
 4.92
 69,143
New Mexico
BYU-UTEP
 2.11
 32,424
New Orleans
Troy-Ohio
 1.53
 29,159
Outback
Florida-Penn State
 7.05
 60,574
Pinstripe
Syracuse-Kansas State
 2.63
 38,274
Poinsettia
San Diego State-Navy
 2.62
 48,049
Sun
Notre Dame-Miami (Fla.)
 3.01
 54,021
Texas
Illinois-Baylor
 3.08
 68,211
Ticket City
Texas Tech-Northwestern
 N/A
 40,121

2009-10 Bowl Game TV Ratings

BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING ATTEND.
Bowl Games
Championship Alabama-Texas
 17.17
 94,906
Fiesta Boise State-TCU
 8.23
 73,227
Orange
Iowa-Georgia Tech
 6.80
 66,131
Rose Ohio State-Oregon
 13.18
 93,963
Sugar Cincinnati-Florida
 8.50
 65,207
Other Bowls
Alamo
Michigan State-Texas Tech
 5.61
 64,757
Armed Forces
Houston-Air Force
 1.83
 41,414
Capital One
Penn State-LSU
 6.83
 63,025
Champs Sports
Miami (Fla.)-Wisconsin
 4.53
 56,747
Chick-fil-A
Virginia Tech-Tennessee
 4.90
 76,777
Cotton
Oklahoma State-Ole Miss
 4.54
 77,928
EagleBank
UCLA-Temple
 2.20
 23,072
Emerald
Boston College-USC
 5.34
 40,121
Gator
West Virginia-Florida State
 3.95
 84,129
GMAC
Central Michigan-Troy
 2.73
 34,486
Hawaii
Nevada-SMU
 1.97
 32,650
Holiday
Arizona-Nebraska
 4.31
 64,607
Humanitarian
Bowling Green-Idaho
 2.39
 26,726
Independence
Texas A&M-Georgia
 2.36
 49,653
Insight
Minnesota-Iowa State
 0.83
 45,000
International
South Florida-Northern Illinois
 1.27
 22,185
Las Vegas
Oregon State-BYU
 2.58
 40,018
Liberty
Arkansas-East Carolina
 4.38
 62,742
Little Caesars
Marshall-Ohio
 2.97
 30,311
Meineke Car Care
Pittsburgh-North Carolina
 4.56
 50,389
Music City
Kentucky-Clemson
 1.95
 57,280
New Mexico
Fresno State-Wyoming
 2.78
 24,898
New Orleans
Southern Miss-Middle Tenn.
 0.76
 30,228
Outback
Iowa-South Carolina
 4.06
 49,383
Papajohns.com
South Carolina-Connecticut
 1.84
 45,254
Poinsettia
Utah-California
 2.81
 32,665
St. Petersburg
UCF-Rutgers
 1.89
 29,763
Sun
Oklahoma-Stanford
 3.31
 53,713
Texas
Navy-Missouri
 2.47
 69,441

2008-09 Bowl Game TV Ratings

BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING ATTEND.
Bowl Games
Championship Florida-Oklahoma
 15.80
 78,468
Fiesta Texas-Ohio State
 10.40
 72,047
Orange
Va. Tech-Cincinnati
 5.40
 73,602
Rose Southern Cal-Penn State
 11.70
 93,293
Sugar Utah-Alabama
 7.80
 71,872
Other Bowls
Alamo
Missouri-Northwestern
 4.60
 55,986
Armed Forces
Houston-Air Force
 1.70
 41,127
Capital One
Georgia-Michigan State
 6.40
 59,681
Champs Sports
Florida State-Wisconsin
 5.20
 52,692
Chick-fil-A
LSU-Georgia Tech
 3.90
 71,423
Cotton
Ole Miss-Texas Tech
 4.40
 88,175
EagleBank
Wake Forest-Navy
 2.20
 28,777
Emerald
Cal-Miami (Fla.)
 4.60
 42,268
Gator
Nebraska-Clemson
 4.10
 67,282
GMAC
Tulsa-Ball State
 2.20
 32,816
Hawaii
Notre Dame-Hawaii
 3.00
 43,487
Holiday
Oregon-Oklahoma State
 4.60
 59,106
Humanitarian
Maryland-Nevada
 2.40
 26,781
Independence
La. Tech-Northern Illinois
 1.00
 41,567
Insight
Kansas-Minnesota
 1.20
 49,103
International
UConn-Buffalo
 2.10
 40,184
Las Vegas
Arizona-BYU
 2.50
 40,047
Liberty
Kentucky-East Carolina
 2.70
 56,125
Meineke Car Care
W.Virginia-North Carolina
 4.50
 73,712
Motor City
Florida Atlantic-Cent. Michigan
 2.50
 41,399
Music City
Vanderbilt-Boston College
 2.80
 54,250
New Mexico
Colorado State-Fresno State
 2.60
 24,735
New Orleans
Southern Miss.-Troy
 0.80
 30,197
Outback
Iowa-South Carolina
 3.10
 55,117
Papajohns.com
Rutgers-North Carolina State
 2.00
 38,582
Poinsettia
Texas Christian-Boise State
 3.70
 34,628
St. Petersburg
South Florida-Memphis
 1.30
 25,205
Sun
Oregon State-Pitt
 2.20
 49,037
Texas
Rice-Western Michigan
 0.30
 58,880

2007-08 Bowl Game TV Ratings

BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING ATTEND.
Bowl Games
Championship Game LSU-Ohio St.
 14.40
 79,651
Rose Southern Cal-Illinois
 11.11
 93,923
Fiesta W. Virginia-Oklahoma
 7.70
 70,016
Orange
Kansas-Va. Tech
 7.40
 74,111
Sugar Georgia-Hawaii
 7.00
 74,383
Other Bowls
Alamo
Penn St.-Texas A&M
 2.67
 66,166
Chick-fil-A
Auburn-Clemson
 5.09
 74,413
Capital One
Michigan-Florida
 9.13
 69,748
Holiday
Texas-Arizona St.
 4.38
 64,020
Gator
Texas Tech-Virginia
 2.60
 60,243
Cotton
Missouri-Arkansas
 3.50
 73,114
Insight
Oklahoma St.-Indiana
 0.40
 48,892
Liberty
Miss. St.-C. Florida
 4.14
 63,816
Independence
Alabama-Colorado
 1.90
 47,043
Sun
Oregon-S. Florida
 2.30
 49,867
Las Vegas
BYU-UCLA
 2.48
 40,712
Outback
Tennessee-Wisconsin
 3.37
 60,121
Humanitarian
Fresno St.-Georgia Tech
 0.77
 27,062
Armed Forces
California-Air Force
 1.99
 40,975
Hawaii
E. Carolina-Boise St.
 1.47
 30,467
Champs Sports
Boston Col.-Michigan St.
 3.69
 46,554
Motor City
Purdue-C. Michigan
 2.68
 60,624
Emerald
Oregon St.-Maryland
 3.59
 32,517
Music City
Kentucky-Florida St.
 4.02
68,681
GMAC
Tulsa-Bowling Green
 1.13
 36,932
New Orleans
Fla. Atlantic-Memphis
 1.63
 25,146
Meineke Car Care
Wake Forest-UConn
 3.74
 53,126
Poinsettia
Utah-Navy
 2.00
 39,129
Papajohns.com
Cincinnati-Southern Miss.
 2.26
 35,258
New Mexico
New Mexico-Nevada
 1.96
 30,233
Texas
TCU-Houston
 0.30
 62,097
International
Rutgers-Ball State
 1.59
 31,455

2006-07 Bowl Game TV Ratings

BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING ATTEND.
Bowl Games
Championship Game Florida-Ohio St.
 17.40
 93,852
Rose Southern Cal-Michigan
 13.94
93,852
Fiesta Boise St.-Oklahoma
 8.40
 73,719
Orange
Louisville-Wake Forest
 6.98
 74,470
Sugar Notre Dame-LSU
 9.29
 77,781
Other Bowls
Alamo
Texas-Iowa
 5.99
 65,875
Chick-fil-A
Georgia-Virginia Tech
 4.78
 75,406
Capital One
Arkansas-Wisconsin
 5.81
 60,774
Holiday
Texas A&M-California
 4.11
 62,395
Gator
W. Virginia-Ga. Tech
 3.87
 67,714
Cotton
Auburn-Nebraska
 3.70
 66,777
Insight
Texas Tech-Minnesota
 0.93
 48,391
Liberty
S. Carolina-Houston
 3.24
 56,103
Independence
Oklahoma St.-Alabama
 2.97
 45,054
Sun
Oregon St.-Missouri
 2.38
 48,732
Las Vegas
BYU-Oregon
 1.97
 44,615
Outback
Tennessee-Penn St.
 4.36
 65,601
MPC Computers
Miami-Nevada
 1.63
 28,652
Armed Forces
Tulsa-Utah
 2.03
 32,412
Hawaii
Hawaii-Arizona St.
 2.53
 40,623
Champs Sports
Purdue-Maryland
 2.99
 40,168
Motor City
Middle Tenn.-C. Michigan
 2.11
 54,113
Emerald
Florida St.-UCLA
 4.48
 40,331
Music City
Clemson-Kentucky
 2.23
68,024
GMAC
Ohio-S. Mississippi
 1.58
 38,751
New Orleans
Rice-Troy
 1.32
 24,791
Meineke Car Care
Navy-Boston College
 3.87
 52,303
Poinsettia
N. Illinois-TCU
 1.45
 29,709
Papajohns.com
South Florida-East Carolina
 1.67
 32,023
New Mexico
New Mexico-San Jose St.
 1.81
 34,111
Texas
Rutgers-Kansas St.
 1.42
 52,210
International
W. Michigan-Cincinnati
 1.31
 26,717

2005-06 Bowl Game TV Ratings

BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING ATTEND.
Bowl Games
Rose Southern Cal-Texas
21.7
93,986
Fiesta Ohio State-Notre Dame
12.9
76,196
Orange
Penn State-Florida State
12.3
77,773
Sugar Georgia-West Virginia
9.0
74,458
Other Bowls
Alamo
Nebraska-Michigan
5.41
62,016
Chick-fil-A Peach
Louisiana State-Miami
5.22
65,620
Capital One
Wisconsin-Auburn
5.18
57,221
Holiday
Oklahoma-Oregon
5.06
65,416
Gator
Virginia Tech-Louisville
3.93
63,780
Cotton
Texas Tech-Alabama
3.70
74,222
Insight
Arizona State-Rutgers
3.33
43,536
Liberty
Fresno State-Tulsa
3.31
54,894
Independence
Missouri-South Carolina
2.80
41,332
Sun
UCLA-Northwestern
2.61
50,426
Las Vegas
California-Brigham Young
2.40
40,053
Outback
Florida-Iowa
2.38
65,881
MPC Computers
Boston College-Boise State
2.33
30,493
Fort Worth
Kansas-Houston
2.28
33,505
Hawaii
Central Florida-Nevada
2.20
26,254
Champs Sports
Clemson-Colorado
2.20
31,470
Motor City
Memphis-Akron
2.17
50,616
Emerald
Utah-Georgia Tech
2.16
25,742
Houston
Texas Christian-Iowa State
2.15
37,286
Music City
Virginia-Minnesota
2.13
40,519
GMAC
Toledo-UTEP
1.98
35,422
New Orleans
Southern Miss-Arkansas State
1.71
18,338
Meineke Car Care
North Carolina State-South Florida
1.52
57,937
Poinsettia
Colorado State-Navy
0.89
36,842

Notes:

  • The BCS National Championship Game in the Rose Bowl was the highest-rated BCS game in history, and it was the highest rated college football game since 1987.

  • The television ratings for the BCS bowl games increased an average of 29.6 percent this year.

  • Overall, the average rating for college football bowl games increased by 15 percent.

  • The ratings for 16 bowl games increased over the previous year.

2004-05 Bowl Game TV Ratings

BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING ATTEND
Bowl Games
Orange Southern Cal-Oklahoma 13.7 77,912
Sugar Auburn-Virginia Tech 9.5 77,349
Fiesta Utah-Pittsburgh 7.4 73,519
Rose Michigan-Texas 12.4 93,468
Other Bowls
Capital OneLSU-Iowa 5.5 70,229
GatorFlorida State-West Virginia 4.0 70,112
SBC CottonTennessee-Texas A&M 2.6 75,704
OutbackGeorgia-Wisconsin 3.6 62,414
PeachMiami (Fla.)-Florida 5.0 69,322
LibertyBoise State-Louisville 4.6 58,355
SunArizona State-Purdue 2.8 51,288
Music CityAlabama-Minnesota 3.1 66,089
Silicon Valley ClassicTroy-N. Illinois 0.6 21,456
HolidayTexas Tech-California 4.0 63,711
EmeraldNew Mexico-Navy 2.0 30,563
Continental TireBoston College-North Carolina 1.8 70,412
AlamoOklahoma State-Ohio State 4.2 65,265
HoustonColorado-UTEP 2.0 27,235
InsightNotre Dame-Oregon State 2.9 45,917
IndependenceMiami (Ohio)-Iowa State 2.8 43,000
Motor CityToledo-Connecticut 1.7 52,552
MPC ComputersVirginia-Fresno State 1.7 28,516
HawaiiHawaii-UAB 2.2 39,754
Las VegasWyoming-UCLA 1.9 29,062
Fort WorthMarshall-Cincinnati 1.6 27,902
GMACBowling Green-Memphis 2.1 29,500
Champs SportsSyracuse-Georgia Tech 1.9 28,237
New OrleansSouthern Miss-North Texas1.4 27,253

2003-04 Bowl Game TV Ratings

BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING ATTEND
BCS Bowls


Sugar Bowl Oklahoma-LSU 14.5 79,342
Rose Bowl USC-Michigan 14.4 93,849
Orange Bowl Miami-Florida State 9.7 76,739
Fiesta Bowl Ohio State-Kansas State 8.7 73,425
Other Bowls


Capital One Georgia-Purdue 8 64,565
Holiday Washington State-Texas 4.86 61,102
Outback Iowa-Florida 4.53 65,372
SBC Cotton Mississippi-Oklahoma State 4.5 73,928
Alamo Nebraska-Michigan State 4.21 56,226
Gator Maryland-West Virginia 4.2 78,892
Peach Tennessee-Clemson 4.02 75,125
Independence Arkansas-Missouri 3.66 49,625
Sun Minnesota-Oregon 3.5 49,894
Insight.com California-Virginia Tech 3.08 42,364
Ft. Worth Boise State-TCU 2.81 38,028
Houston Texas Tech-Navy 2.46 51,068
Music City Auburn-Wisconsin 2.44 55,109
Liberty Utah-Southern Mississippi 2.44 55,989
Motor City Bowling Green-Northwestern 2.33 51,286
Continental Tire Virginia-Pittsburgh 2.23 51,236
Hawaii Hawaii-Houston 2.19 29,005
Humanitarian Georgia Tech-Tulsa 2.09 23,118
Tangerine NC State-Kansas 2.09 26,482
Las Vegas Oregon State-New Mexico 1.76 25,437
New Orleans Memphis-University of North Texas 1.54 25,184
GMAC Mobile Miami (Ohio)-Louisville 1.48 40,620
San Francisco Boston College-Colorado State 1.23 25,621
Silicon Valley Fresno State-UCLA 0.91 20,168

Source: Previously published Nielsen Media Research ratings, the Associated Press, and USA Today.

*All games are on cable channels unless noted by network.

2002-03 Bowl Game TV Ratings

Following are the national household ratings for 28 college football bowl games in 2002-03. There are 105,444,000, or 98.2 percent, of all U.S. households with television sets. The ratings indicate the percentage of television households tuned in to that particular game.

Thus, a 17.2 rating for the Fiesta Bowl indicates that 17.2 percent of all television sets (or 18,168,000 households) were tuned to the game. This compares to an average rating of 8.8 (or 9,279,070 households) for a prime-time program on one of the broadcast networks.


BOWL GAME TEAMS TV RATING NETWORK
Bowl Games
Fiesta Ohio State-Miami 17.2 ABC
Rose Oklahoma-Washington State 11.3 ABC
Orange USC-Iowa 9.7 ABC
Sugar Florida State-Georgia
9.2
ABC
Other Bowls
Gator NC State-Notre Dame 6.2 NBC
Capital One Auburn-Penn State 5.9 ABC
Alamo Wisconsin-Colorado 4.4
Holiday Kansas State-Arizona State 4.2
SW Bell Cotton Texas-LSU 4.2 FOX
Outback Michigan-Florida 4.2
Peach Maryland-Tennessee 4.0
Independence Mississippi-Nebraska 3.6
Sun Purdue-Washington 3.6 CBS
Insight.com Pittsburgh-Oregon State 3.4
Las Vegas UCLA-New Mexico 2.9
Houston Oklahoma State-Southern Miss 2.6
Seattle Wake Forest-Oregon 2.4
Hawaii Tulane-Hawaii 2.4
Music City Minnesota-Arkansas 2.3
GMAC Mobile Marshall-Louisville 2.3
Continental Tire Virginia-West Virginia 2.0
Motor City Boston College-Toledo 1.9
Humanitarian Iowa State-Boise State 1.8
Liberty TCU-Colorado State 1.7
San Francisco Air Force-Virginia Tech 1.6
Tangerine Texas Tech-Clemson 1.6
New Orleans North Texas-Cincinnati 1.4
Silicon Valley Fresno State-Georgia Tech 0.8

**All games are on cable channels unless noted by network


Notes:

  • The Fiesta Bowl was the highest-rated BCS bowl game ever. It also was the top-rated show for the first week of 2003, ahead of the Atlanta-Green Bay (16.0) and New York Giants-San Francisco (13.5) NFL playoff games.

  • ABC's 18.6 overnight rating for the Fiesta Bowl was the highest for either an Alliance Bowl or a BCS championship game in eight seasons. The game surpassed the 17.3 overnight for the 1996 Alliance Bowl title game in which Nebraska beat Florida. Nebraska-Florida received an 18.8 national overnight rating.

  • In national ratings for other BCS games on ABC last season, the 11.3 for the Rose Bowl (Oklahoma-Washington State) equaled the previous season's comparable Fiesta Bowl (Oregon-Colorado), the 9.2 for the Sugar Bowl (Georgia-Florida State) increased 7 percent from the previous year's 8.6 (LSU-Illinois) and the 9.7 for the Orange Bowl (Southern Cal-Iowa) increased 2 percent from the previous year's 9.5 (Florida-Maryland).

    Source: Previously published Nielsen Media Research ratings, The Associated Press, USA Today.

    BCS Bowl All-Time TV Ratings (1998-Present)

    From 1998 to 2006, the BCS National Championship Game was played within the four BSC Bowl Games (Fiesta, Orange, Rose, and Sugar). In 2007, a fifth game was added that was the BCS National Championship Game. Prior to 2007, * denotes BCS National Championship Game.

    BOWL YEAR TEAMS RATING
    1. Rose Bowl
    		2006
    		Texas-USC
    		21.7 *
    2. Orange Bowl
    		2001
    		Florida State-Oklahoma
    		17.8 *
    3. Sugar Bowl
    		2000
    		Florida State-Virginia Tech
    		17.5 *
    4. (tie) Championship Game
    		2007
    		Florida-Ohio State
    		17.4
    4. (tie) Championship Game
    		2008
    		LSU-Ohio State
    		17.4
    6. (tie) Fiesta Bowl
    		2003
    		Ohio State-Miami
    		17.2 *
    6. (tie) Fiesta Bowl
    		1999
    		Florida State-Tennessee
    		17.2 *
    8. Championship Game
    		2010
    		Texas-Alabama
    		17.17
    9. Championship Game
    		2009
    		Florida-Oklahoma
    		15.8
    10. Sugar Bowl
    		2004
    		LSU-Oklahoma
    		14.5 *
    11. Rose Bowl
    		2004
    		Michigan-USC
    		14.4
    12. Rose Bowl
    		2000
    		Wisconsin-Stanford
    		14.1
    13. Rose Bowl
    		2001
    		Washington-Purdue
    		14.0
    14. Rose Bowl
    		2007
    		USC-Michigan
    		13.94
    15. Rose Bowl
    		2002
    		Miami-Nebraska
    		13.9 *
    16. Orange Bowl
    		2005
    		USC-Oklahoma
    		13.7 *
    17. Rose Bowl
    		1999
    		Wisconsin-UCLA
    		13.3
    18. Rose Bowl
    		2010
    		Ohio State-Oregon
    		13.18
    19. (tie) Sugar Bowl
    		2001
    		Miami-Florida
    		12.9
    19. (tie) Fiesta Bowl
    		2006
    		Ohio State-Notre Dame
    		12.9
    21. Rose Bowl
    		2005
    		Texas-Michigan
    		12.4
    22. Orange Bowl
    		2006
    		Penn State-Florida State
    		12.3
    23. Rose Bowl
    		2009
    		USC-Penn State
    		11.7
    24. Sugar Bowl
    		1999
    		Ohio State-Texas A&M
    		11.5
    25. (tie) Fiesta Bowl
    		2002
    		Oregon-Colorado
    		11.3
    25. (tie) Orange Bowl
    		2000
    		Michigan-Alabama
    		11.3
    25. (tie) Rose Bowl
    		2003
    		Oklahoma-Washington State
    		11.3
    28. Rose Bowl
    		2008
    		USC-Illinois
    		11.1
    29. Fiesta Bowl
    		2001
    		Oregon State-Notre Dame
    		10.7
    30. Fiesta Bowl
    		2009
    		Texas-Ohio State
    		10.4
    31. (tie) Orange Bowl
    		2003
    		USC-Iowa
    		9.7
    31. (tie) Orange Bowl
    		2004
    		Miami-Florida State
    		9.7

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