A Survivor Athlete Season

The new season of Survivor starts tomorrow (I know, Steve Misevic and I are the only people who still watch Survivor, but bear with me for a minute) and former NBA player Scott Pollard is one of this season's castaways.  It started as a gimmicky thing, but the athlete being a part of the cast has become more than just something done for publicity.  In fact the athlete/castaway has become a regular part of the show.

Some of these sports personalities are more famous than others.  Some tried to hide their identities, thinking it would make them a target.  It didn't work for John Rocker, who was busted almost immediately, and got voted out primarily because of bigoted comments he made while he played for the Braves.  Jimmy Johnson knew there was no possible way he wouldn't be recognized, so he used that as part of his strategy ("I'm not going to win, so you might as well take me to the final").  But alas, Coach Jimmy didn't last very long on his season.

Then there's Gary Hogeboom, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback who was the first athlete well-known to the viewers that appeared on Survivor.  He lasted until Day 30 and kept his identity hidden pretty much the entire time, only coming clean about his past as an NFL quarterback after he was voted out.  Gary actually made Survivor history as the first player to find and use a hidden immunity idol.

We've seen varying degrees of success for the athlete Survivors, too.  Miami Marlins President David Samson was the first person voted out when he was on the show, while Survivor: Africa winner Ethan Zohn was a pretty soccer player (Ethan got voted out early the next time he played, but that was because he was a former winner).

Obviously most of the athletes to appear on Survivor have been men, but there have been a few female athletes, too.  And they've had similar success.  Former WWE diva Ashley Massaro was the second voted out, while former Olympian Crystal Cox was part of the power alliance and ended up finishing sixth.

Believe it or not, there's been enough sports people in 32 seasons of Survivor that they could actually cast a whole nother season with just sports personalities that have already appeared on the show.  There have been 16, and dividing the tribes would actually be pretty easy.  Scott Pollard's the second NBA player.  There have been two MLB players (Jeff Kent and John Rocker), two longtime NFL players (Gary Hogeboom and Brad Culpepper), four women (thus each side gets two), etc.

So, of course, since I've been talking about this the whole post, you know I had to cast my own season using just the athletes/sports figures who've played Survivor.  My tribes are named after two great commissioners--Pete Rozelle and David Stern.

Stern Tribe
Scott Pollard (Kaoh Rong): 11-year NBA veteran
Jeff Kent (Philippines): five-time MLB All-Star
Jimmy Johnson (Nicaragua): two-time Super Bowl-winning coach, NFL On FOX broadcaster
Gary Hogeboom (Guatemala): 11-year NFL veteran
Crystal Cox (Gabon): 2004 Olympian, gold medalist (later stripped) in the 4x400 meter relay
Jean-Robert Bellande (China): professional poker player, won more than $2 million in his career
Kelly Bruno (Nicaragua): world record-holding amputee triathlete and runner
Ethan Zohn (Africa, All-Stars): winner of the third season; played goalie in the USL Second Division, founded Grassroots Soccer

Rozelle Tribe
Tyler Fredrickson (Worlds Apart): punter/kicker at Cal
David Samson (Cagayan): President of the Marlins
John Rocker (San Juan del Sur): six-year MLB veteran, pitched in 1999 World Series with Braves
Brad Culpepper (Blood vs. Water): nine-year NFL veteran, played in 131 games for the Vikings, Bucs and Bears
"Coach" Wade (Tocantins, Heroes vs. Villains, South Pacific): yes, I'm cheating a little bit by including Coach, one of the most popular Survivor players ever, but he was a D-III soccer coach for 13 years (hence the nickname)
Cliff Robinson (Cagayan): another one of the more recognizable names, a nearly 20-year NBA veteran and the 1992-93 Sixth Man of the Year
Taj Johnson-George (Tocantins): yes, this one's a reach, but I needed another woman, she's the wife of former Titans running back (and current Broadway star) Eddie George
Ashley Massaro (China): former WWE Diva

Since they're all athletes and they all (theoretically) know each other already, you know that wouldn't be a problem, and it would probably change strategies as a result.  As for who would win such a season, you'd have to think Coach and Ethan would be strong contenders.  But I'd also look out for Gary and Taj as dark horses.