Matt Knutson

Biography

Dr. Matt Knutson (he/him) researches and teaches classes on esports, or competitive gaming. As the director of UND's academic program in esports, Dr. Knutson ("Dr. K" for short) manages the esports curriculum and helps facilitate internship opportunities while coordinating with UND's competitive and intramural esports efforts.

Originally from the Twin Cities, Dr. Knutson taught high school English for three years before going back to school to pursue his doctorate. He studied competitive gaming at UC Irvine in the Visual Studies program, writing his dissertation on the temporality of esports. Prior to coming to UND, Dr. Knutson taught at the University of Central Oklahoma for three years in their Department of Mass Communication. 

Dr. Knutson's most recent research projects focus the pre-history of esports, including competitions that took place in the 1980s on arcade and console games, both in the US and abroad. In 2024, he published an article on organized competitive pinball and arcade tournaments in the 1980s for players with disabilities, "Accessible Sport and 'Wheelchair Romance,'" in the journal ROMchip. He has presented work at the Game Developers Conference and at the Annual Conference for the Society for Cinema and Media Studies, and his work has also been published in the journal Game Studies.

Dr. Knutson's personal favorite esports to play are Super Smash Bros. Melee and Rocket League, and he plays Magic: The Gathering both on tabletop and through MTG Arena. Outside of the classroom, Dr. Knutson is a father of two, and much of his gaming day-to-day is with them as they play games such as Pokémon, Hogwarts Legacy, and Untitled Goose Game. He also plays Ultimate and is an amateur musician.