Rich Brenner (November 24, 1946 – February 27, 2012) was an American television sportscaster.

Life and career

Brenner was a graduate of

Baldwin-Wallace College Baldwin Wallace University (BW) is a private university in Berea, Ohio. It was founded in 1845 as Baldwin Institute by Methodist businessman John Baldwin. The school merged with nearby German Wallace College in 1913 to become Baldwin-Wallace C ...

Berea, Ohio Berea ( ) is a city in Cuyahoga County in the U.S. state of Ohio and is a western suburb of Cleveland. The population was 19,093 at the 2010 census. Berea is home to Baldwin Wallace University, as well as the training facility for the Cleveland ...

. He was student senate president, sports editor of the college newspaper, Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities, and a member of

Lambda Chi Alpha Lambda Chi Alpha (), commonly known as Lambda Chi, is a college fraternity in North America which was founded at Boston University in 1909. It is one of the largest social fraternities in North America, with more than 300,000 lifetime members a ...

fraternity. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from BW in 1968. Rich broadcasts his first football game at his college over the radio with play-by-play reports in October 1965, and spent the summer of 1967, between his sophomore and junior years of college, as a correspondent in Vietnam. He began with television career in 1975 American television sportscaster. For two decades, he reported with

WGHP WGHP (channel 8) is a television station licensed to High Point, North Carolina, United States, serving the Piedmont Triad region as an affiliate of the Fox network. The station is owned by Nexstar Media Group, and maintains studios on Francis ...

High Point, North Carolina High Point is a city in the Piedmont Triad region of the U.S. state of North Carolina. Most of the city is in Guilford County, with parts extending into Randolph, Davidson, and Forsyth counties. High Point is North Carolina's only city tha ...

until his retirement in April 2008. He was a captain in the United States Marine Corps Reserves. In 1972, he joined the

4th Civil Affairs Group 4th Civil Affairs Group (4th CAG) is a civil affairs unit of the United States Marine Corps. It is based in Hialeah, Florida. For information on 4th CAG prior to 2012, see 2nd Civil Affairs Group, which was formed out of the original 4th CAG in W ...

located at the Washington, DC Navy Yard. He served as a platoon leader and rose to the rank of Captain before leaving that unit in June 1975. Rich anchored sports for WLVA in

Lynchburg, Virginia Lynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. First settled in 1757 by ferry owner John Lynch, the city's population was 79,009 at the 2020 census. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mounta ...

(1975-1977);

WAVY WAVY-TV (channel 10) is a television station licensed to Portsmouth, Virginia, United States, serving the Hampton Roads area as an affiliate of NBC. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Virginia Beach–licensed Fox affiliate WVBT (chann ...

Portsmouth, Virginia Portsmouth is an independent city in southeast Virginia and across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk. As of the 2020 census, the population was 97,915. It is part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. The Norfolk Naval Shipyard and Naval M ...

(1977-1978); WRAL, Raleigh, North Carolina (1978-1981); WMAQ, Chicago, Illinois (1981-1983); WTVD, Durham, North Carolina (1983-1986) and WGHP, Greensboro, North Carolina (1987-2008). Rich worked tirelessly for charities in his community and across the state. He was a dedicated volunteer, who donated his time as emcee for many fundraising events and charities. He also served as a tutor to kindergartners at Pilot Elementary School. Rich also found time to teach a broadcasting class at

Elon University Elon University is a private university in Elon, North Carolina. Founded in 1889 as Elon College, Elon is organized into six schools, most of which offer bachelor's degrees and several of which offer master's degrees or professional doctora ...

. There is a scholarship offered at UNCGreensboro and another at the Corrigan/Faircloth Chapter for the National Football Foundation in Rich's name. He has mentored hundreds of young aspiring sportscasters and journalist over his 34 years in broadcasting.

Death

On February 27, 2012, Rich developed a cough during a talk given to military and first responders at "The American Red Cross Salute to Heroes" He was taken to Moses Cone hospital where he died that evening of a heart attack. Rich was speaking about a passion of his and many others to finish building the Carolina Field of Honor, which was opened on Memorial Day 2013.

Awards

*Silver Circle Award from the

National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) is an American professional service organization founded in 1955 for "the advancement of the arts and sciences of television and the promotion of creative leadership for artistic, edu ...

*(3) Southeast Regional Emmy awards *

Iris Award The NATPE Iris Awards are an honor for local television programming excellence presented annually in the United States by the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE). The awards were introduced in 1968 and were initially tit ...

from the

National Association of Television Program Executives The National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) is a professional association of television and emerging media executives. The organization was established in 1963. NATPE implements its mission by providing members with educat ...

*Charlie Harville award *Grady Elmore award *Guilford County Sports Hall of Fame *NCHSAA Hall of Fame *1977 Virginia Sportscaster of the Year

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brenner, Rich 1946 births 2012 deaths Baldwin Wallace University alumni Sports commentators United States Marine Corps reservists United States Marines