Sugar Bowl's ratings down slightly from last year

Published Jan. 5, 2011 5:10 p.m. ET

foxsports

The Sugar Bowl's preliminary television rating was down slightly from last year.

Ohio State's 31-26 win over Arkansas on Tuesday night on ESPN earned an 8.4 overnight rating. Florida's 51-24 win over Cincinnati drew an 8.7 on Jan. 1 on Fox a year ago.

The rating was 17 percent higher than last year's Iowa-Georgia Tech Orange Bowl played on the equivalent Tuesday night.

Ratings represent the percentage of all homes with televisions tuned into a program. Overnight ratings measure the country's largest markets.