TV ratings for BCS title game down from last year

Published Jan. 10, 2012 12:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Television ratings for the BCS title game are down from last year.

Alabama's 21-0 win in a rematch against Southeastern Conference rival LSU on Monday on ESPN earned a 14.0 rating. That's down eight percent from last year's Auburn-Oregon game that went down to the final seconds.

It's the second-lowest rating of the 14 BCS title games, beating only a 13.9 for Miami-Nebraska in 2002.

The average of 24.2 million viewers is the second-largest audience in cable history behind the 2011 title game. The BCS championship moved to cable last year.

Ratings measure the percentage of all homes with televisions tuned into a program. The game earned a 16.2 fast national rating among households that get ESPN. Eight BCS title games have drawn a rating of more than that for all homes.