TOTS Interview With Mark St. Amant

[Blitztalk]

This is an interview msaint did with www.totsouth.com a couple months back. I thought I would throw it up here for all the regular Huddlers to read.

 

TOTS Interview With Mark St. Amant,

 

 

Author of Commited/Confessions of a Fantasy Football Junkie

 

By Lee Johnson

 

First of all, thank you for taking the time to talk with us at TOTS. We have a lot of Fantasy Junkies here that will use this information to fuel their Fantasy team for next year if they are smart. I believe that any person that plays Fantasy Football should read your book.

 

 

 

What inspired you to write a book on fantasy football?

 

First, thanks for wanting to interview me, and glad to hear you enjoyed the book so much. I wrote Committed for a few reasons: (1) If I was going to convince my wife that letting her idiot husband quit his job to play fantasy football full-time was a good idea, I had to pretend that something constructive was going to come out of it (other than a possible league championship, which, honestly, she didn’t care about). So, I said, “Hey, I know, I tell her I’m going to write a book about it, that’ll convince her to let me quit a perfectly good job in the middle of a terrible recession!” I knew I was going to chronicle my adventures in blog form anyway, for the Sports Rag, so I just decided to get a little more ambitious and go for the full book; (2) Having been a fantasy football junkie myself and someone who, like all you FF nuts, was constantly searching for any and all information about our game/hobby/obsession, I was always surprised that there’d never been a book like this written about FF, despite how huge/widespread it’d become. Sure, there were dry, stats-based guidebooks like “How to Win Your League in 2002” and season-specific reads like that, but there wasn’t a fun, entertaining, yet informative/practical book that examined the subculture and explosion FF, why people (mostly me) are so obsessed, the funny stories, the league smack talk, camaraderie, competition – all the stuff that makes FF great. Basically, there was no Season on the Brink or Fever Pitch for fantasy football, so I figured, “OK, I guess I’ll have to write it.”; I’m lucky that not only are people saying it’s a quick read and very funny/entertaining, but it’s also filled with practical information that FF players might be able to use; (3) I’d been writing all my life and one of my goals was to get a book published sometime before I die. Thankfully, I was able to combine this goal with doing something I love (playing FF), and happened to get published quasi-early in life rather than when I’m 89. Then again, considering how insane I sometimes get on Sunday afternoons, the chances of my living to be 89 are slim to none.

 

 

 

Can you give us a summary of what readers should expect to find in your book?

 

A lot of laughs, first and foremost. I wanted this to be a fun, entertaining, look at this hobby of ours that any FF player, from first-time newbie to 15-year vet, can relate to…but also, a book with a lot of useful information presented in a not-too-clinical/overly analytical way. Like I said above, it’s the first book of its kind about fantasy football, or fantasy sports for that matter, and most readers who’ve emailed me have said that they really related to this insane quest of mine – my do-or-die run for a league championship. They always say, “I haven’t read a friggin’ book in three years, and I bought yours on Saturday night and read it cover-to-cover by Sunday afternoon!” I’m glad it’s getting that kind of response. Others have reacted like, “Man, it was like I wrote this book myself – this is what I go through every single season.” While the thread that carries the book along is the tale of my run for the Felon Football League championship (my local league), readers will also get a glimpse into other leagues around the country (e.g. the Vegas WCOFF), learn about the history of fantasy football (contrary to popular opinion that it started as an offshoot of roto baseball in the 80’s, FF actually started back in the early 60’s), hear from a wide range of other FF junkies why they’re so into it, and pick up tips and strategies from “experts” and fellow FF players. I never intended it to be a “how-to” – while I think I’m good at this and know more than your average FF player, I don’t claim to be an expert and don’t think there really is such a thing – but because I spoke to so many other players and “names” in the industry, those drafting/team management tips just naturally came about. Basically, I just wrote the kind of book that I would want to read about this hobby that I/we love (and obsess about) – a fun, funny, entertaining, unique story of one insane guy who got just a little too into FF – and, luckily, it’s stuck a chord with lots of my fellow junkies.

 

 

 

If www.totsouth.com considered putting out a fantasy magazine and branching out with premium content, would we stand a chance now that Fantasy Football has blown up like it has?

 

In the 90’s, it obviously would have been far easier. Now? Not so sure. There is just so much content out there, both free and pay, and so many magazines, that the market is totally saturated. When I spoke to Whitney Walters, he said that he doesn’t think anyone starting a new site/FF venture now (whether it be online or magazine) stands nearly as good a chance as he and Dorey (luckily) had when they started the Huddle back in 1997. This wasn’t to discourage anyone, because both Whitney and Dorey are probably two of the nicest guys you’d ever want to meet. He was only being realistic. Back when they started the Huddle, no one was doing anything more than putting out simple e-newsletters, and the big guys (ESPN, CBS, etc.) weren’t at all interested in fantasy football, so the time was right for an online presence. And re: magazines, speaking only from my own experience, I only them as a last resort, if I read them at all – everything’s online now – and only from about August through beginning of September. For me, they’re bathroom reading at best, and I won’t go out of my way to buy one. So, your sales window shuts pretty quickly (who wants to buy a FF magazine in March/April/May/June?), and the information, due to hard copy/paper publishing timelines being far more strict than online content, is often outdated by the time the mag hits stands (e.g. saying that Ricky is still the Dolphins’ #1 RB when he’s really wandering around Tibet smoking hay bail-sized buds of hash). Not discouraging you from giving it a shot – hell, I know what it’s like to take a risk to do something new – but just be prepared to find that there is a lot of competition and that no one is really saying, “Wow, I wish there was another fantasy football magazine out there.” All that said, if your content is original, fun to read, and, above all, gives your subscribers/buyers a competitive advantage over their league mates, then by all means go for it, and best of luck!

 

 

 

You were given the opportunity to pick the minds of some Fantasy Football legends. What would be most important thing you learned in your research for the book? What would you call the biggest Myth?

 

For starters, I learned that if you’re playing against Jamal Lewis and he runs for almost 300 yards and three TDs, you shouldn’t take it out on your computer by whacking it repeatedly with your fist and/or a TV remote control. That’s counterproductive. Aside from that, I knew FF had millions and millions of enthusiasts, but I never knew they’d be so willing to talk about how it fits into their lives with me, a complete stranger. They seemed almost relieved that they could now purge to someone about their obsession. As for myths, I’d say two are: (a) it’s a hobby just for stat geeks; and ( it’s a hobby just for men. While it’s still male-dominated, I learned that far more women play than I ever thought (anywhere from 4-6 million). Oh, and a third myth is that all you need to win a league is a whole ton of free time. Not true. After all, I kicked to the curb the one thing that I thought was getting in the way of my FF preparation time – my meddling job – and I didn’t exactly have a cakewalk to an instant league title.

 

 

 

I think that your book makes the perfect companion to a Fantasy Football Owner. I found a hidden gem in it that I used on almost a daily basis, which I partially credit to winning my league. Have you stumbled across any more gems since you wrote the book that you could share?

 

See? I never intended it t be a how-to, and yet you found something in there that you used to help win your league. Cool. I love hearing that. (What was it?….just curious.) As for other gems, I think the “stud running back theory” took a big hit this season, not only with QB’s like Peyton and Daunte carrying FF teams on their backs at times, but also with the emergence of second- and even third-string RB’s like Nick Goings, Quentin Griffin/Droughns, Michael Pittman, Maurice Hicks, Larry Johnson, etc. For the first time ever, I think I’ll seriously re-think automatically taking a RB with my first pick next year. Depends where I’m drafting, of course, but if it’s between Peyton/Daunte and someone like Jamal Lewis or Deuce McAllister, it’s no guarantee I go with the RB anymore.

 

 

 

In your book you discuss how Fantasy Football players are not really taken seriously by a good share of the media and the players. Do you think this has changed at all in the time since your writing?

 

A little, I think. It’s become far more mainstream even in the time since Committed hit the stands in September (when Meatloaf and Jennifer Garner are in a fantasy football league, you know it’s mainstream, which brings up a question: how can I get into a league with Jennifer Garner, and can she be forced to wear her “Elektra” costume the whole time?) Anyway, where was I…oh yeah, I do think fantasy football players are shedding the “37-year-old virgins living in mom’s basement” stereotype, and that has a lot to do with it just generally getting more mainstream media coverage, and with more women now playing than ever before. Also, pro athletes in other sports are typically in fantasy football leagues, so that helps, too (e.g. John Smoltz runs the Braves fantasy leagues; also, another related anecdote: I was on an author panel discussion in NYC with Buster Olney from ESPN the Mag/NY Times Yankee beat writer/author of Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty, and he recalled one time that he tried to get into the Yankees clubhouse and it was locked. He asked what was up – Was there an emergency team meeting? Was someone getting fired? – and after hemming and hawing, the PR guy finally admitted that the Yanks were just holding their fantasy football draft behind closed doors.) Anyway, the network pre-game shows, while they’re still falling far short of providing any real useful fantasy information for anyone other than total newbies – how many times can Sean Salisbury recommend that owners start that unknown, sleeper QB named Peyton Manning? – they’ve nevertheless begun to cater much more to FF players by giving more weekly fantasy picks and constantly running bottom-screen injury scrolls (which also appeal to the gamblers out there). That said, I do think there’s a huge vacancy in solid FF programming. Radio is on top of it, with Sirius doing some good FF-related shows, but TV is a joke. The closest thing to a FF TV show out there is the “Ultimate Fantasy Football Show” on FOX Sports Net, I think, and even that is taped on a Wednesday, so the info/advice is sometimes moot by Sunday. Bottom line, though, I think FF has really hit the mainstream. I mean, if a staid, “old-school,” literary publisher like mine (Scribner, who published/publishes legends like Hemingway, Fitzgerald & Stephen King) has recognized the explosion and jumped on the FF bandwagon, it’s gone mainstream.

 

 

 

Just about any website related to football talks Fantasy now. Of all the Fantasy Football “experts” out there, who really knows his stuff?

 

I’m biased of course, because I really tout their knowledge in the book a lot, but I think Dorey and Whitney form the Huddle are two of the most trusted experts around. While no one can make your final lineup/draft decisions for you, they give you more ammunition to make a more educated decision, and that, to me, is the role of an “expert.” That said, Dorey himself is adamant that there is no such thing as an “expert.” There are people who spend more time immersed in FF than most, that’s for sure, but when all’s said and done, a whole lot of luck comes into play whether we like to admit it or not. The trick is to minimize that luck by having enough ammo to make that educated, informed choice. As far as who aren’t experts even though they present themselves as such, I can name hundreds of guys, but I don’t want to get sued…but, for now, suffice it to say that no one you see on any of the network pre-game shows is a fantasy expert. Just being a former pro player does not make you a more knowledgeable fantasy player. After all, a certain former Dolphins’ Hall of Fame QB took Mike Vanderjagt with his third overall pick in one of those “experts” league. They might as well have had a monkey throwing its own feces at a draft board.

 

 

 

Okay, I’m sure your league mates are not reading this. Who did you “stalk” this year? Who do you covet for next year? Intentional or not, you have a book in print so you are one of those “experts” now, like it or not.

 

First of all, I made sure to get the one guy who killed me last year: cell phone boy, Joe Horn. Traded for him mid-season. But heading into the draft, I liked a bunch of guys that no one else did, and they paid off, either in production or trade bait. I loved Thomas Jones, but because my fellow Felon League owners didn’t, I got him in the fourth round, and, eventually, traded him along with Favre to an utterly RB-starved team around Week 4 for, yes, Peyton. I loved Javon Walker, and got him in the 6th, but traded him after Week 1 for Andre Johnson, whom I also loved and expected to have an even bigger breakout year . . . and he started out that way, but then came crashing down to earth, so I lost out on that one. As for next year, it’s a little too early to tell what with the NFL draft a few months away, but here are a few (relative) sleepers I like: Barlow (Reasoning: I always bump up talented guys who were huge busts the season before, and he can’t do any worse than this year; you can probably get him cheaply as a #3 RB ‘cause he screwed so many owners this season); Charles Rogers (Reasoning: Will fall off the radar thanks to injury tag, but is uber-talented and if he can stay healthy, and if Harrington puts it together, he could be Reggie Wayne to Roy Williams’ Marvin Harrison); Kevin Jones (Reasoning: Looked like a monster down the stretch); Anquan Boldin (Reasoning: total stud, Denny Green will get an actual NFL QB in there next season, and Anquan will be one year removed from his ACL injury); Julius Jones (Reasoning: Do I really need any reasoning?); Domanick Davis (Reasoning: Down the stretch, he played himself into high #2 RB status next season, a TD machine, HOU offense only getting better, though Carr took a step back this season). DeShaun Foster (Reasoning: was about to explode when he got hurt, Davis is pretty much done). Guys I’d avoid: All the old guys who had one last great season (e.g. Tiki, Curtis Martin, Bus, Ike Bruce, guys who had their contract years this season, (e.g. Jerry Porter, Plaxico, Pennington), and all players named Koren Robinson. Of course, these are just off the top of my head, and lots can change in the off-season with coaching changes, free agency, personnel changes, etc.

 

 

 

Do you want to take a second to plug your website, The Sports Rag?

 

Of course, you can never get enough publicity. The Sports Rag is hands down the funniest satire sports web site on the ‘Net, and I’m not just saying that because I’m the creator and writer. Well, actually, that is why I’m saying that. And it might be the 354th funniest site on the ‘Net. Anyway, check it out. If you’re at all a sports fan, or just a fan of “Onion”-esque humor, I think you’ll enjoy it. www.thesportsrag.com. And feel free to pass the link on to 20 friends and tell them that if they don’t pass it on to 20 more of their friends, they’ll have bad luck for all of 2005, or a helpless child in Guatemala will die of starvation, or something like that.

 

 

 

I understand FOX is on your case. First Al Franken, now you...where will it end?

 

Gotta admit, you baffled me on this one. Has FOX taken out a contract on me for some reason? And is it Rick Fox? Michael J. Fox? Vivica A. Fox? I’m confused here. (Article about Fox show "House" on your Sports Rag website)

 

Our friends that have read the book know of your relationship with Matt Lauer. How often did you lose your mind writing this book?

 

Somewhere between 38 and 5,3627, 586 times. I think the weirdest point was the Matt Lauer hallucination you mentioned, as well as the time I thought I saw Plaxico Burress skimming a pool in the mountains of Puerto Rico (if read the book, it’ll make sense). In any case, my wife would tell you that she started programming local mental hospitals and poison control centers into our speed dial. And, of course, when Joe Horn blew up against me in my semi-final playoff game, I almost went on a ten-state killing spree.

 

 

 

Do you have any other projects in the works?

 

Working on some possible TV adaptations related to the book/fantasy football, and writing book #2, which’ll be about semi-pro football. You can get a taste of that here: http://www.boston.com/news/globe/magazine/.../12/semi_tough/

 

 

 

Last question. I gave you the link for the website www.totsouth.com this will be posted on. Have you checked it out?

 

Yes. Good stuff, nice all-encompassing sports site, with a southern flair. Best of luck with it. I’ll be waiting for my free TFFL hat…

 

LINK

Edited March 15, 2005 by Blitztalk

[broncosn05]

Wow that must have been the biggest interviews ever.

[Blitztalk]

Wow that must have been the biggest interviews ever.

 

735825[/snapback]

 

 

 

I really appreciate the time he took to do this. The site lost everything about a month ago after four years and we had to start over. Luckily I still had this saved somewhere else. Thanks again msaint!

[Hugh 0ne]

Shameless plug.

[msaint]

Shameless plug.

 

736028[/snapback]

 

 

 

 

Hey, I didn't post it.

 

But I'll take it.

[Blitztalk]

He may have been talking about me Of course I wouldn't mind people checking out the site you did it for but as you and I know msaint I was going to post it here a while ago. I'm just shamless