Rich was born and raised on Long Island as a big Jets, Mets and Islanders fan.  He participated in all "cool" sports up until Jr. High School (Middle School for all of you Southerners) where it became obvious that his height...or lack thereof...was an issue.  That's when he donned the tights and became a gymnast.  "Nothing quite like swinging a little 'pipe' and mounting the pommel horse..." is how remembers his gymanstic career. 

Upon graduating high school, it was off to the Ivy League and Cornell University in lovely Ithaca, NY.  While most of his college days are a blur, Double R does remember successfully making it through one semester at Cornell without ever visiting a library and being a dominant force in Playstation. His parents, George and Andrea, are so proud.

Double R did however get his broadcasting career off the ground while at Cornell.  He did some sportscasting and news reporting for the Cornell radio station as well as a news/talk station in Ithaca.  He also worked at the biggest all sports station in the country, WFAN in New York for one summer, where he had the pleasure of being cursed out by Don Imus ... back when the 'I-man' still had a job. 

After a major blizzard in early May of his senior year at Cornell, Rich decided it was time to head south.  After a little well deserved R&R after a strenuous college career (please don't miss the sarcasm here) Double R landed in Chapel Hill working for WCHL.  He hosted a pre-game and post-game show for Carolina Basketball, which provided many great memories and his first trip to the ACC Tournament.  His stint in Chapel Hill ended after a year, when a jackass PD dropped the ax on Double R . . . so Rich took a similar job in Charlottesville for WINA.  That ended badly as well, and it was onto Lynchburg and WLNI in the summer of 1996. 

Rich served as The Sportsline's producer and co-host for just over a year, before taking over the show in 1998 when the original host of the show, Bob Sturm left for Dallas.  Rich has amazingly survived several ownership changes, and a plethora of management changes at The Sportsline's flagship station, WLNI-FM in Lynchburg, despite several forced apologies, suspensions and even a disciplinary letter being added to his personnel file.  The amazing run at WLNI came to an end on June 1, 2007 when The Sportsline broadcast it last show on that station.  Rich, Larry and the gang took the show to ESPN Radio in Lynchburg, Roanoke, Bedford and Danville in an effort to reach more folks and keep the expansion of the show moving forward.  

Rich is currently married to the lovely Trisha . . . although he describes his marriage as "day to day".  He is also the father to two young boys, Ryan "Triple R" and Mason, who Rich hopes to mold in his own image . . . much to the dismay of his wife and everyone who knows him (especially Larry who is quite worried about his two young girls who hang out with the Roth boys way too much for his liking). 

More Facts about Rich

Nickname: Double R
Hometown:  The Big Apple
College: Cornell University
Favorite Pro Team:  J-E-T-S . . . JETS...JETS...JETS
Favorite College Team:  North Carolina - since the age of 12 when I was greatly influenced by a hot camp counselor who attended UNC.
Favorite Event to Attend:  Tough call ... but I will go with sitting courtside at Cameron in 1995 when UNC beat Duke in double OT after Jeff Capel hit a buzzer beater from mid-court to send the game into 2-OT.  Close seconds include Superbowls XXIV & XXVI, and many ACC Tournaments.
Worst Bet Lost on Air:  Had my head shaved on the air in 1997 after UNC lost to FSU in football.
Biggest On-Air Moment:  Proposed to my wife on air, AND SHE ACCEPTED!!!  Though she now apparently regrets that.
Favorite Adult Beverage:  Crown and Coke baby.  And keep 'em coming!
Favorite Sports Movie:  Bull Durham
Favorite Documentary:  Caligula
Favorite Guest to Interview:  Formerly, Bob Glauber of NY Newsday and Cold Pizza . . . when he takes our call! ... but now Hank Gola of the NY Daily News, especially since he called me on it!!!
Most Memorable Interview:  Barry Sanders, days prior to his surprise retirement.
Most Frustrating Interview:  George Welsh, unless he has had a 'few' before hand.
Most Unbelievable Revelation on the air:  Read the Ad I had created to sell my first child on the black market if it was not a boy.  Thank God it was Ryan, and we kept him!
Favorite Quotes:  Ric Flair - "To be the man . . . you have to beat the man!  WOOOOH" & Bob Knight - "If rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it."
NASCAR Fantasy:  3 Championships . . . the most by far of anyone. I am the NASCAR Guru!