20/20 Interview with Bruce Matson

This week Bruce Matson took some time to sit down with us and answer some questions.. Take a look at what he had to say. Enjoy!

 

Where are you from?

I’m from Washington Court House, Ohio which is about an hour south of Columbus, Ohio.

What do you do for your regular job?

I’m a corporate trainer for Zulily. I create training documents for their fulfillment and call centers. On top of that, I teach a lot of training classes.

What is the worst job you have ever had?

As a part-time job in college, I worked for Wal-Mart in their distribution center. I only had to work a few days per week, but it was 16-hour days and with me focusing on my studies, it was not the right fit.

What is the best job you have ever had?

I started my career as a store manager for Adidas. This led to many opportunities from running several stores. They let me manage a storefront at the Boston Marathon a few times along with several tent sales all over the nation.

What do you consider your dream job?

My dream job would be a full-time position in the fantasy industry. I just want to do something I love. At this stage of my life I just want to chase happiness.

How long have you been in the industry?

I have been in the fantasy industry around 6-7 years.

How did you get your break into fantasy football?

This needs to be a podcast!

I made it through college and the start of my professional career paying people to write essays, memos, and other documents for me because I had horrible writing skills. Obviously, that was not going to be a long-term solution since taking an hour to write a three-paragraph e-mail to a coworker would take anywhere between 30-minutes to an hour.

I decided I’d learn how to write. At the time I was on Twitter and saw an opening for this website that no longer exists called WWFantasy.com or something along those lines. I shot them a direct message and started posting articles for them.

From there I bounced around a few other smaller websites, perfecting my skills, and learning the craft of how to put what I was thinking on paper.

The pivotal point of my writing career came when I got injured with a dislocated shoulder playing in an Alumni Football game. Since I was locked to the couch in a sling, I naturally gravitated to writing, posting articles to a word document while using my iPad.

One of my best friends is a sports editor for a newspaper and whenever I had free time, I would help him by taking pictures or whatever that needed done. At the time, shortly after my injury, he was running a website for Fansided called the Toro Times which covers the Houston Texans. He approached me asking me if I could produce fantasy football content for his website and I happily obliged.

I wrote for his site for about a year before transferring to another Fansided site called Fantasy CPR. There I was on a mission with the goal of getting picked up by a much larger website. My writing skills used to be so bad that getting picked up by a larger website whether it was paid or not was a large accomplishment for me.

Eventually after about a year of producing content for Fantasy CPR, I received an offer from DLF and the rest is history.

What tool do you use the most on DLF?

I love the Player Scoring History App. It allows me to zoom out and analyze how a player performed throughout a course of a season.

What tool do you use the most outside of DLF?

Airyards.com is the greatest resource. I use it to monitor a player’s workload through air yards, target share, WOPR and many other stats.

Who was the best sleeper you pegged that broke out?

David Johnson. I loved his film from Northern Iowa and his athletic profile. His performance at the Senior Bowl cemented my feelings toward him.

Who was your biggest whiff?

My biggest whiff would be Christine Michael. I was infatuated with his athleticism. I thought it was going to be an over and done deal when he signed with the Dallas Cowboys, but as we all know, that wasn’t the case.

What is the worst trade you have made?

A long time ago I traded Randall Cobb for Cordarrelle Patterson. I fell into the hype of Patterson, and Cobb showed some signs that he was starting to slow down. After the trade Cobb remained a productive asset and Patterson fell to obscurity.

Who is your favorite underfollowed Twitter account?

There are too many to list. Not be play favorites, but everyone at DLF should have a higher follower count. 

Who is your favorite NFL team?

Dallas Cowboys

Who is your favorite college football team?

Ohio State Buckeyes

Who was your favorite player growing up?

Michael Irvin

Who is your favorite player of all time?

Tony Romo

What other hobbies or passions do you have outside of fantasy football?

I like to BBQ and smoke meats along with making different kinds of BBQ sauces. I have a cherry BBQ sauce that seems to be a crowd favorite. I also like to lift weights.

What are some of your favorite movies?

I am not much of a movie watcher. I just cannot sit still more than a few minutes. I will always stop to watch Rudy, Remember the Titans or even Good Fellas if they are on TV.

Who are some of your favorite bands?

I only listen to music when I work out. I am pretty boring in those regards. If I had to pick, I would go with DMX as my favorite.