Four-Game BCS Rating Up Leading Into Monday's National Championship

The four-game average for ESPN's coverage of the BCS is up 1% to a 7.5 metered market rating (from 7.4 in 2012), heading into Monday's Discover BCS National Championship, according to Nielsen. Last night's coverage of the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl - #4 Oregon's 35-17 win over #5 Kansas State -- generated a 7.7 overnight rating to go along with the strong numbers for the Rose Bowl Game Presented by VIZIO, Discover Orange Bowl and Allstate Sugar Bowl.

Last year's Fiesta Bowl - #3 Oklahoma State's 41-38 overtime victory over #4 Stanford - was played on January 2 immediately following the Rose Bowl and generated a 9.0 overnight rating.

The 2013 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl earned a record 21.1 in the Kansas City market, the highest rating there for any ESPN bowl game on record (dates back to 2000), while Portland, Ore. had its third-highest ESPN bowl rating on record with a 26.2.

ESPN & the BCS

ESPN's third year of exclusive coverage of the five BCS matchups will continue with the Discover BCS National Championship (Monday, Jan. 7) between #1 Notre Dame and #2 Alabama. ESPN, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes and WatchESPN will present the action, as will ESPN 3D.