Broadcaster and Virginia Tech communications professor of practice Bill Roth plans to lead his Introduction to Sports Media class in the second annual March Madness simulation experiment.

 “We want Virginia Tech to become the Quinnipiac of the Final Four,” Roth said in a previous VT News article, referring to Quinnipiac University’s reputation as a powerhouse in U.S. presidential election polling. “I have legitimate aspirations of seeing my class’s tradition become to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament what Quinnipiac University’s polling institute is to U.S. presidential elections.”

Quoting Roth

-        “It’s an exciting project that combines data analytics with sports. Filling out brackets is something millions of Americans do each year, but in this instance, we take a more analytical approach to it.  The class will study the various rating systems, and once the bracket is set, simulate the tournament.”

-        “This year’s postseason tournament is going to be an exceptionally tough test for the analytical experiment because it’s been a very surprising season in college basketball thus far with many unlikely upsets.”

About Roth

Bill Roth is a communications professor of practice in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences at Virginia Tech. His areas of specialization include sports media and broadcasting. The former “Voice of the Hokies,” Roth has served as a play-by-play broadcaster this year for ESPN’s Friday and Saturday football packages and CBS Sports Network’s coverage of NCAA Basketball. 

Expertise featured in The Athletic and WDBJ.

Schedule an interview

To secure an interview with Bill Roth, contact Bill Foy at fwill55@vt.edu (540-998-0288), or Justin McCloskey at jtm2019@vt.edu (571-420-8493).

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