10 Questions with ... Matt Perrault

NAME:Matt Perrault POSITION:Host of "The Big Show" STATION:KXSP Big Sports 590 MARKET:Omaha, NE COMPANY:Journal Broadcast Group BORN:Methuen, MA RAISED:Andover, MA

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

My first on-air gig was at UMass Amherst in 1995. After doing play by play for several UMass sports, I graduated in 1999 and was hired to board op and host a one-hour weekend sports talk show for WSMN in Nashua, New Hampshire. Three months later, I was hired by WINA in Charlottesville, Virginia as Assistant Sports Director and play by play voice of the UVa Women's Basketball team. In late 2000, I left Virginia for Huntsville, Alabama where I took over WUMP's morning sports talk show. I took mornings in Huntsville from a zero rating to the number one local sports talk show in the market. During my five years in Huntsville, I was also the voice of the NBDL's Huntsville Flight - a former minor league team in the NBA. In April, I left Huntsville to do afternoons for the New Big Sports 590 - Journal Broadcast Group in Omaha, Nebraska.

1) How did you get your start in radio?

I was the kid who sat at the Thanksgiving table and argued with my uncles about who should be batting fourth for the Red Sox or who should be the starting quarterback for the Patriots. My family used to say that I could never turn all those heated debates into a career. I guess I proved them wrong. Thankfully! But I didn't start in sports; initially I tried music and hosted a three-hour rock show in college. Then I did an internship at WFNX in Boston and quickly realized that sports radio was much more fun.

2) What are you passionate about?

I'm passionate about winning at the business of sports radio. Okay, maybe I'm just passionate about winning, period! I want to win on every level - programming, sales, promotions, ratings. At every stop in my career, I have been involved in sales in some way, and every day I get up thinking about new ways to help the station increase profitability. Sports is all about passion, and sports talk radio is all about selling that passion. I love how my show can bring a client and listener together with a fun contest or promotion that makes everyone money. I think the wall between sales and programming breaks down when a sports talk station does its job correctly. Unless you're in Boston these days, sports talk radio isn't going to be number one in the ratings, so winning means out-billing everyone. I think sales-minded talent - who go out and close deals - can add big profits to a station.

3) What have you learned about Omaha's sports interests so far- is it, as outsiders may assume, all Nebraska football, all the time? What else, in your short time in the market, is stirring interest in Omaha sports radio listeners?

Right now, it's all about college baseball. The NCAA College World Series opens in just a few and Nebraska is predicted to get to Omaha. The Creighton Blue Jays get some attention, especially when they play Nebraska in baseball or basketball. The two baseball teams played each other in Omaha a few weeks ago and 20,000 people were at the stadium to watch. I have yet to go through a Nebraska football season, but once baseball is over, it will pretty much be all Huskers football, I'm sure. Still, I can't help but bring up those BoSox- or at least rip the Yanks on a daily basis.

4) What do you do for show prep?

I start with the standards - espn.com, foxsports.com, benmaller.com. But I check out non-sports sites too like fark.com, cnn.com, and badjocks.com (Editor's note: No Talk Topics?). No matter what though, I find the best stories come from my own life. I think the only way to be successful in talk is to "live your life" on the air. Listeners respond to real people on the radio and I often bring my own personal experiences and thoughts into the show..

5) You spent over 4 years in Huntsville, and the station there- WUMP and sister Talk WVNN- has been producing top talent (Sean Hannity and many others) for years. As another successful alumnus, what's the secret? Why have so many strong talk and sports talents come from that operation?

For me, it all started with one man - Bill Dunnavant. Bill D., as he is known by those who love him, started a factory for talk talent by taking young, hungry people. He pushed us to learn the business and become personalities. He was the first one to explain to me the business of radio and how to succeed in it. There are several of us, including Sean, who still pick up the phone and talk to Bill D. about our careers and lives. I'll never forget sitting in the conference room in Huntsville and having Bill D. tell me to come to Huntsville because he was going to teach me how to be success. He did exactly that. Peter Thiele, my old PD in Huntsville (now with WORD) and Harry Valentine of Sabo Media took Bill D's dream and executed it week by week with me and turned me from a kid with an attitude into a host with on-air purpose.

6) You're from Massachusetts- what did the Sox Series win mean to you?

2004 was the greatest year of my life. The Patriots won the Super Bowl and then the Red Sox ended 86 years of torment by beating the Yankees in best comeback in sports history. And then they won the World Series! The greatest part about it was how the people in Huntsville allowed me to share and celebrate the victory as if I were in Boston. I did weeks worth of shows on the team - and of course - had to get some Yankee-bashing in. Luckily, I got to share the victory with a fellow Bostonian - a Sox fanatic pretty much goes without saying - who was also working in the media in Huntsville. After the final out, I ran outside, jumped on my car and woke an entire apartment complex screaming "We Won, We Won!" Nothing will ever compare to it.

7) If you hadn't gone into radio, what would you probably be doing today?

Bouncing from job to job, wondering what do with my life. When I found radio, something just clicked. People say to me, "You look like you're 30 but act like you're 40." Radio gave me direction and allowed me to use my mind for business and my passion for sports. I can't imagine being in any other business.

8) What do you do for fun?

I'm a big work-out nut. I hit the gym most days. It might sound weird, but I also watch the Red Sox and Patriots as much as I can as well. Living in Virginia, Alabama, and now Nebraska, I talk about teams that I didn't grow up rooting for. My Boston teams keep me happy and connected to home.

9) Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day without _________________.

...following the Red Sox. I looked around my apartment the other day and got a little freaked out....it was beginning to look like Jimmy Fallon's in "Fever Pitch". I had to redecorate a bit!

10) What's the best advice you've ever gotten? The worst?

The Best For Life - Follow your heart. It will never let you down. For Career - Great sales will keep you on-air no matter what your ratings are. The Worst - Don't shoot too high, because you might be disappointed.