Big viewing numbers for Super Bowl, which ads were most popular?

NEW YORK -- An estimated 95.4 million people watched the Pittsburgh-Arizona Super Bowl, making it second only to last year's game as the most popular ever.

NBC was blessed with a thrilling finish, and viewership peaked late in the fourth quarter, according to Nielsen Media Research.

The 2008 game between the Giants and the Patriots had a similar come-from-behind, last-minute score for the victory. Two big markets and the novelty of a team trying to go 19-0 kicked the 2008 game to an audience of 97.4 million.

The only program other than a Super Bowl to top Sunday night's game in U.S. television history was the finale of the "M-A-S-H" series in 1983.

In the Twin Cities, the game averaged a 43.4 rating and a 67 share. Those are huge numbers, representing 759,500 households in the Twin Cities area, or 1,594,950 people.

But other cities watched in greater numbers. In fact, the Twin Cities rating of 43.4 doesn't even place it in the top 25 cities in the country.

Pittsburgh had the highest viewership, with a 53.6 rating.

Here's the top 25.

1. Pittsburgh 53.6
2. Norfolk 52.6
3. Jacksonville 50.6
4. Buffalo 50.4
5. Richmond 49.3
6. Tampa 49.2
7. Ft. Myers 48.1
8. Cleveland 47.7
9. Phoenix 47.5
10. Indianapolis 47.4
11. Nashville 47.2
12. Washington D.C. 46.7
13. Columbus 46.5
14. Orlando 46.4
15. Memphis 46.3
16. Philadelphia 46.2
17. New Orleans 45.7
18. Knoxville 45.2
19. Baltimore 45.0
20. Denver 44.7
20. Las Vegas 44.7
20. Greensboro 44.7
23. Charlotte 44.6
23. Greenville 44.6
25. St. Louis 44.5

Besides the game, what did people watch?

Watching Danica Patrick take a shower was the biggest draw during the Super Bowl breaks.

Patrick starred in a commercial for Go Daddy's Web site, which was the most-watched spot in the Super Bowl.

The Bud Light ad called "Summer to Winter" ranked second. The Careerbuilder.com ad where the woman screams repeatedly and the Koala bear gets slapped came in third.

The Doritos spot where the office worker throws the snow globe at the snack machine was the most popular of the first half.

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