NCAA Championship Game TV Ratings: Down From 2010, But Far Too High

The 2011 NCAA Championship Game will go down in history as one of the worst title games we’ve seen in any sport, but you wouldn’t know it from the television ratings. Somehow, for some reason, millions of Americans endured the grinding, clanking showcase in all its glory.

Per CNBC’s Darren Rovell, the ratings were down from the 2010 matchup between Duke and Butler (a record 16.8%), but with 13.3% of households tuning in, the Huskies and Bulldogs still topped the championship ratings from 2006, 2008, and 2009, among others.

All of which begs the question: Shouldn’t we all have something better to do?

One theory: Guilt. Sports fans feel obligated to watch any championship game. A seven game series can’t possibly hold everyone’s attention at once, but something about the thrill of single championship game makes it irresistible for America. Like, if pro hockey had a single title game, it would dwarf any NHL playoff rating in the past 20 years.

As for why this title game did better than other NCAA Finals? Maybe it was the Butler narrative, or perhaps, as the game unfolded, it was a simple case of rubbernecking at the biggest highway accident-of-a-sporting event since the Lakers and Celtics Game 7 last year.

In any case, once again, it seems CBS got their money’s worthAnd since this year was such a success, we can only assume this means more Jim Nantz and another year of reach-arounds! Hooray!