On a packed sports Saturday — one Fox paid a hefty price for — Penn State prevailed as one of the biggest college football draws of the 2017 season in its nail-biting loss to Ohio State.

The game was hyped along with the World Series all week long by Fox in its “Greatest Weekend Ever” campaign, and the promotions paid off after the showdown in Columbus turned in a 6.4 rating — the second best draw of the year thus far.

“JOE. THOMAS. BARRETT. WHO SAYS I CAN’T WIN A BIG GAME!?!?”

Gus Johnson shot-calling the huge @OhioStateFB win. GREATEST. WEEKEND. EVER. pic.twitter.com/zJGGrsZ9vl

— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) October 29, 2017

The only game that recorded a higher rating was the season-opening showdown against Florida State and Alabama at the debut of Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, which drew a 6.9.

Saturday’s game added a gem to the file of big games on Fox, which significantly helps the network’s college football credibility. Fox paid lots of money for the opportunity to broadcast games of this caliber, and so far, so good.

To boot with its seasonal rating success, the game was the highest-rated regular season game in Fox’s history. The statistics help boost the game’s claim as one of the season’s best.

Plus, we also got to hear some more fantastic calls from Gus Johnson all afternoon:

Gus Johnson is a national treasure on the mic. pic.twitter.com/LmUAVnjkct

— Brandon Saho (@BrandonSaho) October 28, 2017