ABC vs CBS TV numbers are in for the first 7 weeks

[81usaf92]

So far… CBS has not had a game that has had more than 6.5 million viewers and their highest watched game ranks #12 overall in TV ratings for the year.

CBS basically destroyed their own footprint in college football by not negotiating with the SEC in 2012 and refusing to play ball when renegotiations came back up. It’s so funny to see them paying more money to get the 2nd or 3rd best game in B1G after controlling the SEC for over 20 years.

TV ratings

 

[BamaNation]

Just about every one of the SEC games has been a must-watch game. Good for ABC.

CBS & CBS Sports Network are carrying scintillating games like...

• Wisconsin @ USC
• Akron @ Ohio State
• Merrimack @ AFA
• UCLA @ Hawaii
• Army @ FAU
• AFA @ SJ State
• SD State @ Ore St.
• ND @ Purdue
• Colorado @ Col. St.
• Umass @ Buffalo
• USC @ Michigan

... and you can get the picture. Even the games that might be decent are awful.

The result is obvious: Choose bad football conferences that nobody cares about and you get bad football that nobody cares about.

 

[81usaf92]

Just about every one of the SEC games has been a must-watch game. Good for ABC.

CBS & CBS Sports Network are carrying scintillating games like...

• Wisconsin @ USC
• Akron @ Ohio State
• Merrimack @ AFA
• UCLA @ Hawaii
• Army @ FAU
• AFA @ SJ State
• SD State @ Ore St.
• ND @ Purdue
• Colorado @ Col. St.
• Umass @ Buffalo
• USC @ Michigan

... and you can get the picture. Even the games that might be decent are awful.

The result is obvious: Choose bad football conferences that nobody cares about and you get bad football that nobody cares about.

Well they also are competing with NBC for the 2nd biggest game of the day in the B1G every week because FOX has priority over the game of the week in the B1G.

Yeah that means you should get a USC or Michigan game but you aren’t getting a major game like Oregon vs Ohio State. You are mostly stuck with the Oregon vs Illinois games

 

[AUDub]

CBS is the ultimate example of “congratulations! You played yourself.”

People didn’t watch the games for Gary Danielson lol.

 

[AUDub]

I do miss the CBS jingle though. Just felt like fall for the longest time.

 

[BamaMoon]

I do miss the CBS jingle though. Just felt like fall for the longest time.

I agree 100% on the CBS Sat. football music. I miss that about CBS (but otherwise I'm happy the SEC is now on ABC/ESPN).

But I watched a highlight reel last week and it had the CBS music at the end of some of the plays and it brings back good memories.

I, for one, didn't hate Danielson...kinda liked him. He said things that Bama fans didn't like, but most of the time they were true.

And, I may be one of just a handful of fans, who loved Verne. I know in the latter years he made a mess of names, but Sean McDonough is the only current PBP guy that has a flair for the dramatic that is as good as Verne Lundquist.

When he retired from CBS's Master's coverage they did a piece on him that was very, very good. Despite his gaffes, he's a good man, FWIW.

 

[3yards&dust]

I agree 100% on the CBS Sat. football music. I miss that about CBS (but otherwise I'm happy the SEC is now on ABC/ESPN).

But I watched a highlight reel last week and it had the CBS music at the end of some of the plays and it brings back good memories.

I, for one, didn't hate Danielson...kinda liked him. He said things that Bama fans didn't like, but most of the time they were true.

And, I may be one of just a handful of fans, who loved Verne. I know in the latter years he made a mess of names, but Sean McDonough is the only current PBP guy that has a flair for the dramatic that is as good as Verne Lundquist.

When he retired from CBS's Master's coverage they did a piece on him that was very, very good. Despite his gaffes, he's a good man, FWIW.

I agree about Danielson. To me, he was pretty unbiased and very knowledgeable As you said, the things Bama fans didn't like, were true. He did talk too much about penalties, imo, but most all commentators do that these days. I miss him and CBS.

 

[Power Eye]

I do think it's funny how short-sighted CBS was. Now Nessler and Danielson's talents are being wasted, and I do think they are the 2nd best announcing crew behind Fowler/Herbstreit. No idea what their CBS contracts are, but maybe they'll find their way back to the SEC at some point.

Fox has really boosted its coverage over the last few years and has a pregame show that's as good as GameDay. However, Tim Brando is their 2nd or 3rd play-by-play guy and he is insufferable.

 

[81usaf92]

No idea what their CBS contracts are, but maybe they'll find their way back to the SEC at some point.

Well they screwed up in 2012 when Slive literally offered them a 20 year deal at the same rate with the only caveat in that they amend their total amount to reflect the addition of Mizzou and aTm. But CBS basically said “no we will address it on renegotiation”. By then ESPN had shown how committed they were to the SEC and what they could offer. So CBS basically created their own competition by being greedy instead of killing it.

My main gripe with CBS is that they constantly held the schedule hostage with their one game a week time slot. ESPN has effectively killed the possibility of LSU having nothing but night games and Alabama having a ridiculous number of 11am games. Had CBS taken 2-3 games a week instead of play 1 game a week (except maybe twice a year) then it would have been more tolerable. But as it was, Alabama got stuck with the same CBS crew 6 games a year and had 3 11 am kicks and possibly 2 night games that no one cared about. While Auburn and LSU constantly got prime time games.

 

[davefrat]

Just about every one of the SEC games has been a must-watch game. Good for ABC.

CBS & CBS Sports Network are carrying scintillating games like...

• Wisconsin @ USC
• Akron @ Ohio State
• Merrimack @ AFA
• UCLA @ Hawaii
• Army @ FAU
• AFA @ SJ State
• SD State @ Ore St.
• ND @ Purdue
• Colorado @ Col. St.
• Umass @ Buffalo
• USC @ Michigan

... and you can get the picture. Even the games that might be decent are awful.

The result is obvious: Choose bad football conferences that nobody cares about and you get bad football that nobody cares about.

Merrimack?

 

[KrAzY3]

I think the biggest issue was CBS signed an absolutely horrible deal. Instead of making a big boy offer to the SEC, they backed out and then they gave similar money to the Big 10 without actually getting a similar deal.

So, when Oregon played Ohio State and got huge ratings (9.6 million) it was on NBC They also aired the Iowa game which got 2.28 million in week two instead of the Colorado vs. Nebraska game that got 5.67 million (which would have been one of their highest rated games). Fox has also had bigger rated games such as Texas vs. Michigan (9.19 million), so I really have no idea why they'd pay that much to not even get the best games.

 

[crimsonaudio]

Wait, are you telling me Rutgers/Maryland isn't drawing huge numbers? Purdue / Northwestern?

 

[DzynKingRTR]

Wait, are you telling me Rutgers/Maryland isn't drawing huge numbers? Purdue / Northwestern?

does CBS still have a hawt sideline reporter?

 

[Windsortide]

I don’t mind ABC feel it has been better than CBS and I feel the SEC has an unbalanced schedule made for TV. That’s why some teams schedule are significantly harder than others. I hope our league doesn’t eat each other. What are others thoughts?

 

[TexasBama]

I liked Verne

 

[DzynKingRTR]

I don’t mind ABC feel it has been better than CBS and I feel the SEC has an unbalanced schedule made for TV. That’s why some teams schedule are significantly harder than others. I hope our league doesn’t eat each other. What are others thoughts?

for our game ABC had the worst camera angles I have seen this year. there were 2 reviews that could not be overturned because they did not have a good shot of it. How does that happen in today's world?

 

[81usaf92]

I think the biggest issue was CBS signed an absolutely horrible deal. Instead of making a big boy offer to the SEC, they backed out and then they gave similar money to the Big 10 without actually getting a similar deal.

So, when Oregon played Ohio State and got huge ratings (9.6 million) it was on NBC They also aired the Iowa game which got 2.28 million in week two instead of the Colorado vs. Nebraska game that got 5.67 million (which would have been one of their highest rated games). Fox has also had bigger rated games such as Texas vs. Michigan (9.19 million), so I really have no idea why they'd pay that much to not even get the best games.

Again all Slive initially asked them to do was amend the deal to account for Mizzou and aTm in terms of revenue per capita in exchange for a 20 year deal. But they refused.

Once ESPN gave the SEC the SECN in 2014 then CBS should have known that they could no longer just assume the SEC was coming back with a similar offer. I’m just surprised that they didn’t even entertain a competitive offer.

But like you said, they are paying more for the 3rd best game on the B1G slate than what they would have been paying for the best game on the SEC slate. It feels like when NBC lost the NFL to CBS and Fox

 

[BamaNation]

I think the biggest issue was CBS signed an absolutely horrible deal. Instead of making a big boy offer to the SEC, they backed out and then they gave similar money to the Big 10 without actually getting a similar deal.

So, when Oregon played Ohio State and got huge ratings (9.6 million) it was on NBC They also aired the Iowa game which got 2.28 million in week two instead of the Colorado vs. Nebraska game that got 5.67 million (which would have been one of their highest rated games). Fox has also had bigger rated games such as Texas vs. Michigan (9.19 million), so I really have no idea why they'd pay that much to not even get the best games.

I see the discussion going something like this...

"We have bigger cities in our new package!" thus believes CBS.

Yeah, you nimrods, but people in BIG cities generally don't care so much for college football.

"But they're BIG cities and the demographics are favorable!"

But they don't care about college football - particularly the brand you are selling.

"Wait a minute, are you saying this was NOT a good deal for us, even with the BIG cities?"

This is obviously too complex for you. Maybe just start showing NCIS or CSI 24/7 or some lame reality show. Choose any reality show. They're all lame but they should sell.

"You think THOSE will sell well in all the BIG cities"

Yep.

 

[BamaNation]

Merrimack?

Merrimack.

 

[BamaNation]

Well they also are competing with NBC for the 2nd biggest game of the day in the B1G every week because FOX has priority over the game of the week in the B1G.

Yeah that means you should get a USC or Michigan game but you aren’t getting a major game like Oregon vs Ohio State. You are mostly stuck with the Oregon vs Illinois games

Otherwise known as what I SITLL call the "JP" games.

The games I posted were from the first few weeks of the season at a cursory look. I'm sure there were a small handful of decent matchups but they're getting nothing like they had when the got to pick the best game each week in the SEC - which meant it was usually one of the best games on the weekend.