Joe Schmo is one of us

I just got off the phone with Joe Schmo. Or, as he is known to his friends and colleagues in our industry, Chase Rogan.

Chase, an agronomist from Pittsburgh, is the star of the new Spike TV series Joe Schmo: The Full Bounty. If you're not familiar with the concept of the show, it's a fake reality show. I know, aren't all reality shows fake? But this one, all of the competitors on the show are actors playing a role… except for the "Joe" who doesn't know that the other competitors are actors and that the whole thing is a sham. On this new season, which airs on Tuesdays on Spike, Chase is the Joe.

It makes for pretty funny TV, actually.

Rogan owns Pure Turf Consulting in Pittsburgh. He's got an M.S. from Penn State and is working on a few research projects right now, including one on snow mold.

So is Chase looking to change careers, and become a professional bounty hunter, which is the grand prize of the show?

"No," he laughs. "I was in it to win the $100,000."

So… did he win the money?