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After 17 years, John Ourand (
@Ourand_SBJ
) says goodbye to
#SBJ
π
The following was shared with our staff from Publisher & Executive Editor Abe Madkour earlier this morning β¬οΈ
The Grammys top TV market from last night was Kansas City, which posted a 13.6 rating. That's up 86% from last year.
Kansas City clearly is the home TV market for Taylor Swift.
An Astros fan heard the infamous trash can bang 54 times in a game against the Blue Jays. "Toronto right-hander Mike Bolsinger allowed four runs in 1/3 of an inning that day and never pitched in the majors again."
Warriors-Grizzlies on ABC Sunday (Game 1) averaged 7.7 million viewers - the most watched conference semi game on ABC for 11 years. It peaked at 10.2 million viewers.
"The Last Dance" numbers blew away even the most optimistic projections. Episode 1 averaged 6.3 million viewers and Episode 2 averaged 5.8 million viewers across ESPN & ESPN2.
ESPN has pulled out of Big Ten media rights negotiations, ending one of the longest sports media relationships in the business. ESPN said no to the conferenceβs final offer of a 7-year/$380 million per-year package, sources tell SBJ.
Story to be filed soon.
In accepting an ESPY award, Alex Morgan thanks ESPN for agreeing to carry NWSL games. "We obviously enjoyed success on the biggest stage right now. But when the World Cup is behind us, it is the professional league that we need to continually lift up and grow."
RIP ESPN the Magazine. ESPN will shut down the print version of the magazine this September. The money-losing publication launched in March 1998. SBJ's story:
Top NHL local TV markets this season:
1. Pittsburgh
2. Las Vegas
3. St. Louis
This is the first time in at least 12 years, Sabres games on MSG Plus are not in the top two. The Sabres' 35% drop is the steepest in the league.
SBJ Media has the details: ππ
TV Sports on Wednesday
1. Blazers-Nuggets on TNT: 3.513 million viewers.
2. Hurricanes-Islanders on NBCSN: 1.188 million viewers.
3. Stars-Blues on NBCSN: 1.003 million viewers.
4. Barcelona-Liverpool on TNT: 635,000 viewers
5. Astros-Twins on ESPN: 588,000 viewers
That thrilling UConn-South Carolina womenβs basketball game that went to OT? It averaged 461,000 viewers on FS1 -- the most watched womenβs college basketball game by far on the network.
Last night's "Monday Night Football" combined for 15,435,000 viewers on ABC/ESPN, up 26% from last yearβs Week 2 Monday Night Football telecast between Cleveland and the New York Jets that aired solely on ESPN (12,217,000).
Top NBA local TV teams this season:
1. Warriors
2. Blazers
3. 76ers
The Knicks outpaced the Nets in New York (1.24 rating vs 0.68). The Lakers rated better than Clippers in L.A. (1.94 vs 0.62).
SBJ Media has the details: ππ
In the KC market, the game peaked with a 90 share from 8:45-9p CT.
That means that, in the Kansas City market 90% of all TVs that were on were watching the game.
News: The Dallas Cowboys will be the βHard Knocksβ team this season. The five-episode series debuts Aug. 10 on HBO. Live Schreiber returns as narrator.
Overnights: NBC's coverage of the Cowboys-Bucs game hit a five-year high in the overnights, source says. The 15.9 overnight is up 16% from last year. This number does not include out-of-home viewing, so the final national number is almost certain to see an even bigger increase.
Spotted: Four days before the start of training camp, Redskins QB Alex Smith dined at Bareburger in Dupont Circle tonight and picked up the checks for most of the tables around him.
The Orioles will be on ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball" July 30 - the first time "SNB" has been at Camden Yards in five years. The O's will play the Yankees.
College Football Saturday
CBS Notre Dame-Georgia: 9.287 million viewers
Fox Michigan-Wisconsin: 4.733 million
CBS Auburn-Texas A&M: 4.659 million
ABC Texas-Oklahoma State: 3.637 million
ESPN Florida-Tennessee: 2.461 million
ESPN Florida State-Louisville: 1.535 million
Huge TV numbers for βThe Match:β Champions for Charity:
* 5.8 million viewers; most-watched golf event in cable TV history, TNT says.
* Peak of 6.3 million viewers (5:45-6p ET).
Most of the calls on DC sports radio today about the Wizards-Caps move to Virginia cited rising crime as a major factor in why theyβve avoided going to games downtown lately.
NFL Networkβs re-air of Sundayβs Patriots-Steelers game last night averaged 928,000 viewers, making it the networkβs most watched game re-air. Comp: last nightβs live coverage of Rockets-Heat on TNT averaged 1.1 million viewers.
Want to hear an amazing Colorado-CSU TV stat?
At 2:15amET, the game still registered 8.230 million viewers - an audience that was more than 1 million viewers bigger than the peak audience of any other CFB game this week.
Here's the clip of Kevin Brown's pregame comments on the Orioles' recent record against the Rays ahead of a series finale on July 23. Sources tell AA these comments led to Brown's current indefinite suspension from Orioles' broadcasts.
ESPN: Jessica Mendoza signed a multi-year extension keeping her in the "Sunday Night Baseball" booth and having her make more regular appearances on"Baseball Tonight," "SportsCenter" and "Get Up!"
Yesterday morningβs Chiefs game posted an incredible 94 share in Kansas City.
That means that 94% of the TVs in use were tuned to the Chiefs-Dolphins game.
.
@barstoolsports
Barstool was in the running to sponsor a college football bowl game in Mobile, Ala.,
@markjburns88
reports. The sponsorship ended up going to
@LendingTree
. SBJ Media is live: ππ
CFP Semis
16.1 million for Bama-Cincinnati
16.5 million for Georgia-Michigan
Last year
18.9 million for Bama-Notre Dame
19.1 million for Ohio St.-Clemson
ESPN Programming plans:
ESPN: SportsCenter all day and night
ESPNEWS: video simulcasts of radio shows (First Take, Your Take Radio and The Will Cain Show) and taped programming
ESPN2: simulcast a combination of ESPN and ESPNEWS.
NBC: Eagles-Bears 22.9 overnight rating "is best for any NBC NFL Playoff since...2006 & best Wild Card game for NBC in 25 years (23.3/41 for John Elway & Broncos at L.A. Raiders, 1/9/94)."
Saturday College Football Numbers
Georgia-Clemson on ABC: 8.863M viewers
Alabama-Miami on ABC: 5.674M
Penn State-Wisconsin on Fox: 5.409M
UCLA-LSU on Fox: 3.219M
Texas-Louisiana on Fox: 2.879M
Oklahoma-Tulane on ABC: 2.526M
W VA-Maryland on ESPN: 1.35M
Kansas City's local TV rating for yesterday's Bills-Chiefs game was a 61.9. Its share was an 85 share. That means that 85% of all TVs in use with the KC DMA were tuned into the Chiefs game. An astounding number.
The Midwest makes up four of the top five TV markets for yesterday's Hot Dog Eating Contest.
Top Markets:
1. Cincinnati
2. New York
3. Milwaukee
4. Pittsburgh
5. Columbus
ESPN's two XFL games over the weekend averaged 2.9 million viewers.
* Sunday's St. Louis-Dallas game averaged 2,495,000 viewers (and pulled a 7.4 rating in St. Louis.
* Saturday's Seattle-DC game averaged 3.303 million viewers.
Source says overnight TV rating from last nightβs Packers-Bears game is really good - up around 14-15% from last season. It should come in around a 15.3 or so.
Inbox: Tony Romo will interview Sam Darnold, Daniel Jones and Josh Allen as part of a 30-minute show that airs on CBS May 24 at 2pmET. Tracy Wolfson will host "In the Huddle with Tony Romo."
* A Super Bowl on Feb. 28.
* A regular season that starts in mid-Oct.
* No bye weeks.
* No Pro Bowl.
These are all contingencies the NFL has considered as it moves forward with plans to hold a full regular season. My story with
@BenFischerSBJ
.
ESPN will cancel Nichols' show "The Jump." It will launch a new afternoon NBA show in the lead-up to next season. No details on that showβs format or host.
ESPN commits $1 billion to the American Athletic Conference - an average of $83.3 million per year - through 2031-32. Here's my story with
@SmittySBJSBD
.
The new XFL will have no cheerleaders. It will not hire players who have arrest records. And it will make sure that all of its players stand for the national anthem.
Colleges have looked into moving football season up to July, August and September this season,
@SmittySBJ
reports. An abbreviated summer season is "an opportunity to play games when the warm weather could help prevent the spread of the virus."
Jackie MacMullan will host a narrative NBA podcast for The Ringer and has committed to make regular appearances on other Ringer pods. Her first appearance comes later today on Simmonsβ pod.
John Angelos was in DC today at the Econ Club of DC lunch, and youβll never guess who he was chatting with in the Green Room beforehand.
David Rubenstein, who is said to be negotiating to buy the Oβs.
(GM CEO Mary Barra also was part of that conversation at the Ritz.)