In terms of TV ratings, the Orange Bowl did little to bolster the case for the ACC's current national relevance in college football, while the Meineke Bowl showed it has a good thing going.
FOX Sports' telecast of Virginia Tech's 20-7 victory over Cincinnati on Jan. 1 drew a 6.1 rating nationally — reportedly the lowest ever for a Bowl Championship Series game — and only a 3.6 in the Raleigh-Durham market. (Not sure why, but the Charlotte figure was a hefty 8.9, among the highest local ratings, according to FOX. There was no ACC basketball game that day.)
ESPN's telecast of West Virginia's 31-30 victory over North Carolina, in front of a packed house at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte on Dec. 27, drew a 4.5 nationally, a 10.2 in Raleigh-Durham and a 10.5 in Charlotte, the highest in that market for an ESPN or ESPN2 bowl game since the sports network began keeping records in 2001. (The 10.2 here was second only to UNC's 16-10 victory over Auburn in the 2001 Peach Bowl.)
Nevertheless, Stewart Mandel writes for SI.com, the ratings don't paint a picture of health for the BCS system.
