BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) — The Rose Bowl’s move to cable drew ESPN’s highest preliminary rating for a non-NFL game.
TCU’s 21-19 win over Wisconsin on Saturday earned an 11.7 overnight rating, down 15 percent from the 13.8 for Ohio State-Oregon on ABC last year. ESPN is available in about 13 percent fewer homes than ABC.
The rating was down just 3 percent from the 12.1 in 2008 for USC-Illinois.
Oklahoma’s 48-20 victory over Connecticut in the Fiesta Bowl on Saturday drew a 6.7, lower even than two recent regular-season games on ESPN: USC-Ohio State in 2009 and Boise State-Virginia Tech in 2010.
Ratings represent the percentage of all homes with televisions tuned into a program. Overnight ratings measure the country’s largest markets.
