Smallscreen News

No. 3 Notre Dame hosting Wake Forest on NBC, details and college schedule

By April MacIntyre Nov 13, 2012, 15:47 GMT

Hines Ward - © Charles Norfleet / PR Photos

The NBC Sports Group presents its penultimate Saturday of college football coverage this season with a quadruple-header that is headlined by No. 3 Notre Dame hosting Wake Forest at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

Notre Dame is 10-0 for the first time since 1993 and needs a victory vs. the Demon Deacons (5-5) in order to keep their National Championship hopes alive.

From NBC

NBC Sports’ college football studio team of Liam McHugh, 1984 Heisman Trophy Winner Doug Flutie, and two-time Super Bowl champion Hines Ward will go on the road again, providing pre-game, halftime and post-game coverage from Notre Dame Stadium. In the final Notre Dame Football game on NBC this season, Tom Hammond returns to manage the play-by-play duties and will be joined in the booth by analyst Mike Mayock. Alex Flanagan will report from the sideline in South Bend, Ind.

Through six games, Notre Dame Football on NBC is experiencing its best season in seven years. The Fighting Irish are averaging a 3.0 HH rating and 4.68 million viewers on NBC, up 76% compared to last year in both categories (1.7 HH rating and 2.66 million). The 4.68 million viewers are the best since 2005 (5.17 million), while the 3.0 rating is the best since 2006 (3.2).

This season is the first since 2005 in which three Notre Dame home games averaged at least 5 million viewers (Michigan-6.38 million; Stanford-5.11; Pittsburgh-6.09). Last season there were zero such games.

Notre Dame’s triple-overtime, 29-26, victory over Pitt on NBC on Nov. 3, was the second-highest rated and second-most watched game of the year (3.8 HH rating and 6.09 million viewers), trailing only the Michigan game, which aired in primetime (4.0 HH rating and 6.4 million).

The game vs. Pitt was up 192% and 193% in HH rating and viewers, respectively, compared to the sixth game of the 2011 season, which came against Maryland at FedEx Field in primetime (1.3 HH rating and 2.08 million viewers).

NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA ONLINE & APP: NBC Sports Live Extra will live stream all of NBC’s Notre Dame games on NBCSports.com and on its new app for mobile devices and tablets. NBC Sports Live Extra online will feature a simulcast of the broadcast feed in full HD quality plus one additional online-only bonus camera. The video player will include picture-in-picture capability and full DVR functionality, allowing the user to pause the live video and even review plays in “slo-mo.”

Sideline reporter Alex Flanagan will provide live in-game tweets. Additionally, fans can watch in-game highlights, live coverage of the Notre Dame and visiting teams’ bands at halftime, as well as a live postgame footage that will include head coach Brian Kelly’s press conference.

Harvard hosts Yale in “The Game” on Saturday at noon ET. This marks the 129th playing of “The Game,” which dates back to 1875. Yale leads the series 65-55-8. Randy Moss will serve as the play-by-play announcer and will be joined in the booth by analyst Ross Tucker. Carolyn Manno will report from the sideline at Harvard Stadium in Boston, Mass.

Boise State hosts Colorado State at 3:30 p.m. ET. Paul Burmeister will manage the play-by-play duties for the game and will be joined by analyst and NFL Hall of Fame inductee Rod Woodson. Anthony Herron will serve as sideline reporter from at Lyle Smith Field at Bronco Stadium in Boise, Idaho.

James Madison hosts Old Dominion at 7 p.m. ET. Todd Harris will manage the play-by-play alongside analyst Blaine Fowler from Bridgeforth Stadium and Zane Showker Field in Harrisonburg, Va.

NBC SPORTS GROUP COLLEGE FOOTBALL SCHEDULE (all times ET)

Noon - Sat., November 17

Yale at Harvard
NBC Sports Network

3:30 p.m. - Sat., November 17

Wake Forest at Notre Dame
NBC

3:30 p.m. - Sat., November 17

Colorado State at Boise State
NBC Sports Network

7 p.m. - Sat., November 17 

Old Dominion at James Madison
NBC Sports Network

3:30 p.m. - Sat., November 24 

Air Force at Fresno State
NBC Sports Network