Jan 12, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes players celebrate on the podium after the 2015 CFP National Championship Game against the Oregon Ducks at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports - RTR4L72A (USA Today Sports)
It was a championship night on every level for not just Ohio State but ESPN as well. Monday nights primetime inaugural College Football Playoff National Championship gave the sports cablers its highest metered market result in its 35-year history and the best ever in cable history.
The Buckeyes’ 42-20 win over Oregon delivered a 18.5 overnight rating for ESPN. That a 21 percent jump for the National Championship game over last year’s Florida State vs. Auburn in the BCS National Championship, which the CFPNP replaced. That 2014 game pulled in a 15.3 MM result for ESPN.
Record breaker to record breaker, the championship game of the new College Football Playoff format beat the previous ESPM metered market holder by 14 percent. The 2011 Auburn vs. Oregon BCS National Championship garnered a 16.1 overnight . Last night’s Oregon-Ohio State game peaked from 9:30 p.m. – 9:45 p.m. with a 20.5 MM rating.
It goes without saying, the telecast delivered the biggest rating (51.2) in Columbus, with Oregon coming in fourth (37.6). The rest of the top 10 markets last night were Columbus, Dayton (43.8), Cleveland (41.3), Portland, Birmingham (36.1), Cincinnati (26.5), Jacksonville (25.7), Knoxville (25.5), Greenville (24.1) and Atlanta (23.0).
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