Matt Meese is a lead writer and cast member of the BYUtv show, Studio C. He’s also the most famous fake volleyball player on the Internet. As the “peaceful wizard of head trauma,” better known as Scott Sterling, Meese played a sports hero who has a habit of taking brutal shots to the face.

It started with a soccer video in 2014, and Meese came back with a volleyball sequel this week. For The Win caught up with Meese to learn more about the legend that is … Scott Sterling.

FTW: Why volleyball for the Scott Sterling sequel?

Meese: “We knew we wanted to do a sequel. I wrote up a couple of different ideas, and we were looking at a repeat of soccer. And it just didn’t feel like the jokes were as fresh. It was like, ‘Ah, it just kind of feels like we’ve seen this before.’ And so, the hope was with volleyball that it would automatically feel fresher and provide opportunity to make some different kind of jokes. But still, kind of keeping to the roots of the sketch, which is me getting pummeled in the face.”

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What was the original inspiration for Scott Sterling?

Meese: “It was just an idea just like any of our other sketches. We write so much that you never really know what’s going to stick with people. It’s funny because once the soccer one started to get picked up, it got picked up overseas and got big there before it came back to the states. And we were all like, ‘Oh yeah, soccer is really popular outside of the United States.’ We weren’t anticipating a niche audience for that sketch, but it was a big one.”

Were you expecting a similar reaction with the volleyball video?

Meese: “Yeah, we were really happy with that. Because sequels are always tough. Because the first one, you have the advantage that there’s no expectations. So with the second, there’s that expectation that’s built in now, and you kind of have to rise to the occasion. So we’re like, ‘Well, this something that we think will be fun. Hopefully others do too.’ And I think a lot of people were excited to see that Scott Sterling was back. The name recognition helped us out a lot this go around.”

From a behind-the-scenes standpoint, how tough is it to put together something that looks like a genuine sports broadcast?

Meese: “Yeah, totally. Well, fortunately, the network that we are a part of is BYUtv, which is attached to BYU – the college. And so, there’s all kinds of access for us when it comes to sports. That’s how we were able to shoot the soccer one and make it look legit because they know how to shoot sports here. And so, it was very easy to say, ‘OK, we want to shoot a fake sports thing.’ So, we were well poised to do it.”

How did you reach out to simulate the environment of a sporting event and make it feel authentic inside the arena?

Meese: “We reached out on our Facebook page. And we have a great fanbase, especially locally. And so it was easy. And when people heard it was a Scott Sterling sequel, they were ALL there for us. They were very enthusiastic and supportive. They wanted to be a part of it. And so yeah, they were awesome. The fans for our soccer video were just as – if not more so – because they had to be there late into the night. Be loud and rowdy. We got the cops on us because they were so enthusiastic. It was really good. We have awesome fans. We really do. I know everyone says that, but we mean it.”

Had BYU Athletics caught on to it and helped out?

Meese: “They were supportive for the soccer one, but they knew this one was going to get big like, ‘Oh, that was really great.’ For the second go around it was a lot easier for us to say, ‘We’re going to need this facility and these people.’”

Are you known around campus as THE Scott Sterling?

Meese: “Well, locally, people are really familiar with the show, so there’s a lot. They do mention Scott Sterling for sure, but they also mention our other characters and stuff because they’re pretty well-versed on the rest of our material. Outside of Utah, there’s definitely a lot more Scott Sterling recognition. People don’t know me by my name, they know me as Scott Sterling. It’s great. It means that we’re getting outside of our normal audience.”

Could a third video possibly be in the works? What sport would it be?

Meese: “Well, I don’t know if I could say like for sure. But I know we’ve had some good laughs throwing around some ideas for baseball and ping pong. But yeah, I don’t know if anything has necessarily grabbed me just yet. It has to be like, ‘Oh, yeah, that’s the one.’ So, we’ll see. We’ll play around with some ideas just like we did with this one. If we have something like fun and different to do, then we’ll do it. That’s kind of our rule of thumb when we try to bring something back. Do we have something new to say? And if so, yes!”