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Scores Big In His Field - Rich Russo
03/05/2009
Sports – the joy of victory and the agony of defeat.
Competition – spurring us on to meet new challenges. It can be said that no pastime is more greatly associated with the American psyche or culture than sports…either playing or viewing. Sports enthrall us by mirroring the drama of life.
Rich Russo has dedicated himself to sharing his love of sports. A 10-time Emmy-award-winning director, Russo has been in the industry since graduating college in 1984.
He shared with Living in Holmdel that he knew he wanted to be in this business since the first time he walked into a TV production truck. He said, “I knew this is what I wanted to do, especially directing, where I knew I would have an impact on what millions of viewers were seeing. I equate it to playing sports, which has been so much a part of my
life. When teams are coming out of the tunnel onto the field it's a big adrenaline rush.” He continued, “You know you have to put on the best possible product for the viewers. I have a great passion for directing live sports, and I certainly have been very fortunate to
do something I have always had a passion for.”
Russo is responsible for hours of television programming centered on sports that have been viewed by all of us. He has covered events full of joy and euphoria, such as the Super Bowl, and also has covered events showcasing great tragedy and human loss, such as NASCAR when icon Dale Earnhardt, Sr. crashed and died.
Following, Rich allows us a glimpse into his interesting and illustrious career in sports.
LIH: It is our understanding that you are involved with FOX Sports. Can you please tell us what your title is?
RR: I am a director with FOX Sports. I have been with FOX since 1994…since FOX got the NFL. I had [previously] been with CBS.
LIH: How long have you been doing this?
RR: In this business? You know…I have been doing this since I graduated college in 1984.
LIH: What exactly does a director do?
RR:What I do as a director is…I am responsible for the visuals people see with regards to all thecamera shots putting the replays on the air. I really work exclusively sports, so I direct live sporting events. I am responsible for the camera shots, the camera angles, working with the producer and putting the replays on the air. That is kind of what it is in a nutshell. I have a lot of different monitors that I am looking at during the course of the game.
LIH: Is there a formula to determine what shots to use?
RR:You always have a game plan going into a game, but I like to do live events. When I started, when I was at CBS, I would produce features. That is what a lot of us did coming up. I am more of a live person. A lot of it is reacting, anticipating; a lot of it is working with the crew and being on the same page as the announcers. It is a whole process of everyone working together.
LIH: How large of a crew do you work with?
RR: It depends. For instance I just finished working on my third BCS National championship game in a row. We had 20 cameras; for a normal NFL game the number of cameras would range from 10 to 14, depending on the game.We also had 14 tape machines, a total of about 125 to 150 people – audio people, video people, utility people, and all the technical people.
LIH: Is that the team you travel with from location to location?
RR: During the NFL season, for example, I had a set number of core camera people re-tape people, and a technical director who is actually the person who sits next to me; so when I ready cameras or ready replay machines to go on the air, he actually is physically pushing the buttons. But there is a certain core group of people who travel together.When you get to a bigger game or a bigger event there are more and more people that you work with throughout the season. You try to get, for example for the BCS Championship National game, the most talented people. We also use some local people (especially in the environment with the economy now), so it depends on the game.
LIH: Did you initially become involved in this field through sports or through TV?
RR:Well, I went to Penn State. I was a Lacrosse player in college, and really what happened was [that] an assistant Lacrosse coach of mine, Pete Kowalski, knew one of the guys, Jimmy Tubbs (who worked with Brent Musburger – did his stats, spotter up in the booth, and traveled with him), he hooked me up with him. I had always been involved in sports…playing or watching. He actually got me in touch with Jimmy. I was right out of college, trying to figure out what I wanted to do. Long story short, I ended up working at CBS. I was living in the city [NewYork] at the time, and was working at the studio as kind of an information guy. At the time, I was [working] on the NFL Today. I was working for an advertising agency during the week, so I was moonlighting at CBS; then luckily one thing lead to another, there was an opening 6 or 7 months in. I went on a series of interviews and I became a Broadcast Associate, which was kind of like the entry-level position at CBS. So here I am, I had just gotten out of college and was working for the network. I started at $50 a day. I would go from the advertising agency to CBS. During the college basketball tournament I would go to the studio from work. I worked in the studio for guys like Jim Nantz; I would help with information as a researcher. It was really that one phone call that started it all.
LIH: Would someone who was interested in this field follow that same path today?
RR: I think it is harder today. I think I was very lucky and I also made the most of my opportunities. I have gone on and talked at Penn State, especially when we were doing college football. I would go up and talk at schools; I always tell people to really try to work at the local level, get hands-on experience. I had had hands-on experience at Penn State. It was great – it was not like when I got out, but it was good background. It is good to try different areas, like editing, working both on and off camera, producing or directing. Try to get as much hands-on experience as you can. Another reason it is different than back then is [that] there are a lot more TV entities now; probably more local cable and satellite opportunities as opposed to just networks. I realize how lucky I was back then.
LIH: Following that line of thought, has the job changed much since you first entered the field? Technology? Commercial interests? Sponsor pressures?
RR: Absolutely, I was fortunate when I started in research and then became a broadcast associate…I was working with Pat Summerall and John Madden. That to me was amazing. I felt I needed to keep my head down, work hard. I was working with the best people; the producers and directors as well. I have seen, as the years go by, that you have to stay up with technology. There are so many advancements. You look at TV now versus TV in ’87 or ’88; it was great TV but times are different.
LIH: There seems to be more “stuff” you can do in technological terms. How does it affect your job?
RR: It is funny; there is more “stuff” to use. I have seen people who have worked on big shows where you don’t want to have too much stuff as sometimes it does not translate to the viewer. You have to have equipment. HD, for example. This whole transfer over from SD in the last 3, 4, 5 years has changed the way you cover the game.
LIH: How?
RR: You shoot the game the same. You have to understand what is out in front of you. People areseeing more. You have more equipment but you have to use it in the right way so people can see more during the course of the game. HD is one example. There are tons of them, there are graphics; more doesn’t mean better.What we fight with is, you want to go with technology but you don’t want to, during a telecast, bombard people with all these graphics and all these sound effects because you know people are there to watch the game.
LIH: Although, I love the yellow line!
RR: The two things I think that are simple and great are the score board that is on all the time – and my boss David Hill really initiated that in ’94 as the FOX box – and the yellow line. Its funny that you say that, but those are two inventions that are pretty basic and pretty simple that the average fan really likes.
LIH: You had touched upon that there are more opportunities through more stations doing sports, but does that cause more competition?
RR: Yes, you always want to stay on top of your game. I hope you always want to do the bigger and bigger events, I hope those events stay on network television, although cable is getting bigger and bigger.Absolutely, the more that is out there the more you want to lure viewers to your network. I think competition is good. People laugh at me when I watch games. I watch as a fan and as a director to see how different people do different things – things you may like or not. Competition is healthy.
LIH: In general, what is your favorite area or areas to cover?
RR: I have been lucky to cover different sports. Back when I was at CBS I covered golf, college basketball, football, the NFL, and the Olympics. I love the NFL and I love covering basketball. To me the NFL is one game a week. It is still a big event every week. That is why NASCAR also has pull. When I was growing up I was a stick and ball guy. I didn’t follow NASCAR, and when we got the property what I liked about it was that it was also a big event every week. I still think football, in general, is still our bread and butter.We at FOX have the BCS bowl games, and I enjoy having the opportunities to do those games.
LIH: This leads to the question on which there has been controversy. Which college teams get chosen to play in the bowl games? Do you see any changes in that area? Any expansions? Will there ever be a college championship?
RR: There are a lot of bowl games. It’s a system. I find the system is great in that the regular season means a lot. Especially in the last month of the college football season I am always seeing what is going on in each conference. It makes for an exciting season. Do I think eventually there will be a playoff? I don’t see that happening in less than 5 years. I think the current BCS people like the system. I think there is a side that wants it to have that finality.
LIH: Were there any special moments or sports icons that have been especially great to cover?
RR: It is funny about that. I will go back to college for a second. I directed the Boise State/Oklahoma game which was the Fiesta Bowl three years ago. As we were doing the game, I felt it could go down in history. You had a Cinderella team, there was a proposal. In the NFL, each Sunday is new experience. This year I get to do my eighth world broadcast of the Super Bowl…the international feed. I have had a lot of close competitive games on any given Sunday that make it special. A lot of the Super Bowls have been over the top.
LIH: Is there any sports person you are particularly impressed by?
RR: Brett Favre. He epitomizes everything that a person should be.We meet with players and coaches regularly. To me he is one of the greatest athletes to cover. You can talk with him, “BS” with him. He is a regular guy.
LIH: In doing research I came upon information that you are actually an Emmy-winning director. What did you win for?
RR: I have been fortunate to win an Emmy 10 times. From back when I was at CBS as an Associate Director during the NCAA tournament to MLB on the FOX pre-game show to BCS Boise State/Oklahoma to the best series for NASCAR on FOX – I was one of the directors on the series. I have been fortunate to be on some great shows.
LIH: Are there any broadcasters or anchors that you have particularly liked working with?
RR: I have learned a lot from different people. Some of the names I have mentioned like Pat Summerall and John Madden, Jim Nantz, Verne Lundquist, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, and Joe Buck and Sam Rosen. You learn a lot from all of them.
LIH: Are you the guy in their ear?
RR: The producer and director are talking to them in their ear during the game.
LIH: Are there any other areas in sports that you have covered?
RR: The NBA finals – Pistons/Lakers; theMasters; I did two winter Olympics; NCAA tournaments; the NHL.
LIH: Are there any events that you worked on that you think of as outstanding?
RR: I would say the Boise State/Oklahoma Tostitos Fiesta Bowl 2007 and last year’s World Feed Super Bowl. There have been so many – the Kentucky/ Duke East Regional Final, a couple of Masters, and the Lakers/Pistons back in the ’80s.
LIH: Is the way you cover an event very different from sport to sport?
RR: I think the biggest thing is you have to know the sport and TV. But the focus is the sport. It is like playing; you have to be able to react. It is a lot of knowing the game and preparation. I will watch tape of prior games, get to the sites, talk to coaches, players, and have a plan going in. In golf you have cameras in different spots. In NASCAR I face great challenges, as I did not grow up with it; you have 43 cars and 43 different potential stories and lots of cameras.
LIH: Where did you grow up?
RR: I grew up in Massapequa, Long Island, New York.
LIH: As you mentioned you have different cameras and constraints for different events. Do you determine that?
RR: A lot is working within a budget. At a normal NFL game you have 8 to 10 cameras. FOX is really located in Los Angeles. A director and producer are assigned and then the decisions are made.
LIH: What percentage of your job is travel?
RR: During the football season it is continuous. I am gone pretty much every weekend. After that it depends on the season. For NASCAR it is weekends, too. There is a significant amount of travel. My wife is great. She has been dealing with it since we met.
LIH: This segues right into your family information. What’s your wife’s name, and do you have children?
RR: My wife is Sally. We have two children – my son, Jack who is 7, and my daughter, Isabel, age 8.
LIH: How long have you lived in Holmdel, and why did you choose to live here?
RR: I had heard a lot about the town and Monmouth County. I knew it was close to the beach and to New York City. I had heard about the school system being very good. When we came down here we fell in love with it. We like it a lot. It was a great decision.We have met so many wonderful people here. The support we have had and the friends we’ve made…it’s been great. I know that it has helped my wife with all the traveling that I do; it makes it easier. My wife has been great with balancing the demands of my job and our family. It really is a terrific town.
STAT BOX:
Favorite Restaurants:
The Salt Creek Grille and Café Zebu
Favorite Musician:
Bruce Springsteen
Favorite Movies:
Stripes, Rudy, and The Godfather
Three people you’d like to have dinner with:
my dad (he passed away 2 1/2 years ago), Tiger Woods (he could help me with my golf game), and Barack Obama
Pet Peeve:
people who swerve when driving because they are on a cell phone without a head set.
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