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The Daily OrangeShow of hands | SU student earns $20,000 winning a rock, paper, scissor tournament
By Sarah Jane Capper
Posted: 4/15/09, 2:12 AM EST Section: Feature
"Like every sport, it's the right combination of strategy, skill and luck," he said.
For each match, Monaco wore a black T-shirt emblazoned with the white-lettered "Do work son," a gift his mother picked out for him at the MTV store in Times Square. She intended the shirt as a back-to-school gift that would remind him to study hard, but during the tournaments it was his good luck charm.
Monaco said wearing the same shirt also helped him to create a character, which the producers from MTVU encouraged. To build a memorable persona, Monaco adopted the nickname "Naco." He wore large plastic sunglasses to make sure opponents couldn't read his next throw.
Stepping into a new role provided an exciting fresh start, said Monaco, but he wanted to stay true to himself. Producers wanted to portray him as "Naco Knockout," because he played lacrosse. He declined, saying he was usually the one getting hit because of his small size.
"I didn't want to push it too far, you know?" Monaco said.
Monaco enjoyed the VIP status after his victory. On the beach, at clubs and on the street, people recognized him and challenged him to play rock paper cissors, Monaco said. He partied hard to celebrate.
Yet the hectic schedule was also tiring. On a typical day, he would wake up to film clips for MTVU from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. He then received instructions about where to enter and exit during matches and was prepped for questions he'd be asked on stage.
"It was a lot of fun doing it for that experience, but it's not something I'd see myself doing for the rest of my life," said Monaco, though he plans to defend his title next year. "You're not guaranteed everything. You sort of become a person that you might not want to be."
Dave Bauman and Kevin Matthews accompanied Monaco to Panama City Beach during his second week of competition. The three grew up on the same street in their Connecticut town, where they often settled disputes with rock paper scissors.
They spotted posters for the Syracuse tournament when Bauman and Matthews were visiting, then entered because it was something they'd always done together. Bauman was the group's rock paper scissors champ, while Monaco always lost.
Bauman believes his friend's unexpected victory happened for a reason. He knows things were tight for Monaco, who has faced family difficulties and was taking out loans.
"He needed that money more than anybody else I saw down there at the competition," said Bauman. "Everyone else took it as a joke."
sjcapper@syr.edu
For each match, Monaco wore a black T-shirt emblazoned with the white-lettered "Do work son," a gift his mother picked out for him at the MTV store in Times Square. She intended the shirt as a back-to-school gift that would remind him to study hard, but during the tournaments it was his good luck charm.
Monaco said wearing the same shirt also helped him to create a character, which the producers from MTVU encouraged. To build a memorable persona, Monaco adopted the nickname "Naco." He wore large plastic sunglasses to make sure opponents couldn't read his next throw.
Stepping into a new role provided an exciting fresh start, said Monaco, but he wanted to stay true to himself. Producers wanted to portray him as "Naco Knockout," because he played lacrosse. He declined, saying he was usually the one getting hit because of his small size.
"I didn't want to push it too far, you know?" Monaco said.
Monaco enjoyed the VIP status after his victory. On the beach, at clubs and on the street, people recognized him and challenged him to play rock paper cissors, Monaco said. He partied hard to celebrate.
Yet the hectic schedule was also tiring. On a typical day, he would wake up to film clips for MTVU from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. He then received instructions about where to enter and exit during matches and was prepped for questions he'd be asked on stage.
"It was a lot of fun doing it for that experience, but it's not something I'd see myself doing for the rest of my life," said Monaco, though he plans to defend his title next year. "You're not guaranteed everything. You sort of become a person that you might not want to be."
Dave Bauman and Kevin Matthews accompanied Monaco to Panama City Beach during his second week of competition. The three grew up on the same street in their Connecticut town, where they often settled disputes with rock paper scissors.
They spotted posters for the Syracuse tournament when Bauman and Matthews were visiting, then entered because it was something they'd always done together. Bauman was the group's rock paper scissors champ, while Monaco always lost.
Bauman believes his friend's unexpected victory happened for a reason. He knows things were tight for Monaco, who has faced family difficulties and was taking out loans.
"He needed that money more than anybody else I saw down there at the competition," said Bauman. "Everyone else took it as a joke."
sjcapper@syr.edu
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Rell
posted 4/15/09 @ 8:55 AM EST
Was this really worthy of a feature DO staff?
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