Rich Eisen Richard Eisen ( ; born June 24 , 1969 ) is an American television journalist who works for NFL Network . He is married to Suzy Shuster , college football sideline reporter for ESPN on ABC . He wrote the book " Total Access " which was published in 2007 . Early life and education . Eisen was born in Brooklyn , New York , and was raised on Staten Island . Eisen attended the University of Michigan , where he served as co – sports editor of the school ' s " Michigan Daily " and member of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity . He graduated in 1990 with a bachelor of arts degree , and in 1994 he earned a master of science degree in journalism from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University . Broadcasting career . Early years ( 1990 – 1996 ) . Eisen was first a staff writer for the " Staten Island Advance " from 1990 – 1993 , and the " Chicago Tribune " in 1993 and 1994 . He was then a sports anchor and reporter at KRCR - TV in Redding , California from 1994 to 1996 , and also worked in television as the Medill News Service ' s Washington correspondent ( 1994 ) . ESPN ( 1996 – 2003 ) . Before working for the NFL Network , he worked for ESPN . He was part of a duo with Stuart Scott , and became well known for his humor , most notably his impressions of Atlanta Braves broadcaster Skip Caray and provided interviews during the Home Run Derby . Eisen was also the host of ESPN ' s reality series , " Beg , Borrow & Deal " . For ESPN Radio , he served as host of Major League Baseball and as a guest host on " The Tony Kornheiser Show " and " The Dan Patrick Show " . Outside of the world of sports , Eisen hosted the ABC show " Domino Day " . Among Eisen ' s notable achievements while at ESPN , was breaking the news of St . Louis slugger Mark McGwire ' s retirement from baseball in 2001 on " SportsCenter " . Days later , he sat down with McGwire for an exclusive interview elaborating on the decision . NFL Network ( 2003 – present ) . Rich Eisen was the first on - air talent added to the NFL Network roster in June 2003 . Eisen is the face of the 24 - hour , seven - day - a - week cable and satellite channel dedicated to football that debuted in November 2003 . He was the main host of the show , " NFL Total Access " , the network flagship program , until August of 2011 . Eisen signed a new long - term deal with NFL Network in 2010 and became the new host of " NFL GameDay Morning " , the first pregame show on the NFL Network . Eisen also remains host of " NFL Total Access " and " NFL GameDay Highlights " , as well as NFL Network ’ s " Thursday Night Football " pregame , halftime and postgame shows and special on - location coverage from league events such as Kickoff , Pro Football Hall of Fame , NFL Scouting Combine , NFL Draft and Super Bowl . Eisen expanded his resume in 2010 with the debut of ‘ The Rich Eisen Podcast , ’ the first - ever podcast for NFL . com . The weekly podcast , available on NFL . com and iTunes , features guests from the world of sports and entertainment news talking football and all the latest headlines . Since its debut , the podcast has been downloaded more than 7 , 000 , 000 and recently celebrated its 100th Episode . In November of 2012 , Eisen ' s first Thanksgiving Special aired on the NFL Network with a variety of celebrity guests talking mostly sports and current events . In 2005 Charles Davis challenged Eisen to compete in the 40 yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine . His times are listed below ( in seconds ) : Eisen ' s 40 - yard dash time ( Recorded at the 2012 NFL Scouting Combine ) is 6 . 03 seconds , a personal best . CBS Sports . He worked as a play - by - play announcer for CBS Sports coverage of the U . S . Open Tennis Championships , in addition to serving as the anchor for the network ' s weeknight ( and late - night ) highlights show during the tournament . Other projects . Eisen is the host of the TNT original reality series , " The Great Escape " , which debuted on June 24 , 2012 . < br > In 2012 , Rich started the Punters Are People Too movement after Bryan Anger was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft .