The Wiz of Odds

Bowl TV Ratings Drop 9 Percent

Are there simply too many bowl games?

One could come to that conclusion because bowl TV ratings were down 9%, according to an analysis of Nielsen Media Research data by the Birmingham News. There were a record 35 games over 24 days and many of the games featured uncompetitive matchups. The average margin of victory was 15.3 points, the highest in a bowl season since 1997.

Twenty-three of the 33 returning bowls drew fewer viewers than a year ago. Among the 23 with a decline, 13 plummeted by 20% or more. The data is for 34 games. Nielsen did not have rating numbers for the TicketCity Bowl because the game was on ESPNU.

This was the first year of ESPN's four-year deal to broadcast all the Bowl Championship Series games and the move to cable impacted ratings. The five BCS games were down an average of 12% from last season and tied with 2007 for the BCS' lowest average rating in at least the past nine years. The move to cable cut off about 15 million homes that don't have cable or satellite.

There were ratings winners. The Outback Bowl featuring Florida and Penn State drew more than the Orange or Fiesta. The Insight Bowl, which was previously telecast by the NFL Network, moved to ESPN and saw a ratings spike of 460%.

The percentage decrease/increase chart is after the jump.

In Bowl Business, the Rich Get Richer

How has the past decade been for you? For executives of bowl games, it has been good — very good.

The three men pictured at the top of this post — Jim McVay, left, Paul Hoolahan and Gary Stokan — have seen their salaries rise a combined $1,265,241 since 2001. That's an average of $421,747 per man.

They are not alone. Salaries of bowl executives have risen dramatically since 2001, according to data obtained by Sports Business Journal and the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Sign of the Times

Check out this sign an Oregon fan was holding at Monday night's Bowl Championship Series title game. Thanks to Kevin.

Bowl Game Confidential V

Trying to make sense of 35 bowl games in 24 days is a task too big for mere mortals, so we asked Mike Hlas, the award-winning Cedar Rapids Gazette columnist and force behind The Hlog, to review each of the games. Here is his fifth and final installment of Bowl Game Confidential.

Fiesta Bowl: Oklahoma 48, Connecticut 20. Announced attendance: 67,232. ... It was the fourth-lowest crowd ever for a BCS game. ... Oklahoma got its first Fiesta Bowl win since defeating Wyoming in 1976. ... Sooners quarterback Landry Jones threw for an OU bowl-record 429 yards. ..."The tempo — we just couldn't make some plays," UConn Coach Randy Edsall said. ...

Fun stat: UConn tied the record held by Florida State (2002 and 2005) of most losses by a BCS bowl team, with five.

Tweet: @stanfinger: So UConn is an automatic qualifier and TCU is not? Ma$$ive non$en$e, I tell ya.

Orange Bowl: Stanford 40, Virginia Tech 12. Announced attendance: 65,153. ... Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck had almost as many touchdown passes (4) as incompletions (5). ... All four TD throws went to tight ends. ... "We haven't seen a quarterback like that," Hokies linebacker Shayne Skov said. ... Virginia Tech wore orange helmets for the first time. Orange helmets didn't help the NFL's Cleveland Browns or Cincinnati Bengals this season, either.

Fun stats: Stanford will finish in the AP's top 5 for the first time since 1940. Virginia Tech fell to 1-27 against top-5 teams.

Old Media

A look at how the Bowl Championship Series title game was played on front pages of newspapers. Click an image for an enlarged view.

Auburn's Win Is Fan-tastic

What was the party scene like on Monday in Glendale, Ariz? Clearly off the charts, especially for Auburn fans after the Tigers' 22-19 victory. Wiz correspondent Greg Laughlin was on the scene and you can view his full gallery by clicking here.