How BCS title game rated on Atlanta TV

The BCS title game drew a TV rating in Atlanta almost double the national number — but less than half the rating it drew in Birmingham.

ESPN’s telecast of Alabama’s 21-0 victory over LSU on Monday night posted a 26.8 Nielsen rating in the Atlanta market, compared to a national rating of 14.0.

Not surprisingly, the game drew its highest rating in the Birmingham market: a robust 61.2.

The rating is the percentage of all households with televisions that are tuned in to a particular program.

Atlanta’s rating translated to an audience of about 650,000 homes.

Atlanta had the fifth highest rating among metered markets for the game. New Orleans was second behind Birmingham with a 53.3 rating, followed by Oklahoma City (29.1) and Minneapolis-St. Paul (27.5).

Nationally, the game’s rating was the third lowest among the 14 title games since the advent of the BCS.

The game was the most watched of college football’s bowls on Atlanta TV this season. The next most watched here was Georgia’s triple-overtime loss to Michigan State in the Outback Bowl, which posted a 19.0 local rating Jan. 2.

About the Author

Tim Tucker

Tim Tucker, a long-time AJC sports reporter, often writes about the business side of the games. He also had stints as the AJC's Braves beat writer, UGA beat writer, sports notes columnist and executive sports editor. He was deputy managing editor of America's first all-sports newspaper, The National Sports Daily.

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