The ongoing football ratings success is not restricted to the NFL.
ESPN confirmed Tuesday morning that the BCS National Championship game between Auburn and Oregon set the all-time cable overnight ratings record with a 16.1 metered market rating. That figure tops the previous high of a 14.4 for a Monday Night Football game between the New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints in 2009.
ESPN forecasts that the viewership total, which will be released in later national data, will also stand as the highest in the history of cable television.
Within key markets, the broadcast scored a dominant 67.0 rating in Birmingham, Alabama and a 37.5 in Portland, Oregon. Also in the top five were a 28.8 for Nashville, a 28.6 for New Orleans and a 27.7 for Knoxville.