At TGH we’ve already mentioned that some of the Houston Outlaws members were a part of Team USA in the 2017 Overwatch World Cup. It seems that this year could be no different as there is evidence that suggests some of the Outlaws will be trying out. However, it looks like one of their star players won’t be contending for the 2018 Team USA Overwatch World Cup Trophy.
EXHIBIT A: Lyon on the loose
Earlier this month on June 9th, Jacob “JAKE” Lyon of the Houston Outlaws turned down an offer to try out for the 2018 World Cup.
A big thanks to the team USA committee for offering me a spot in the tryouts, but I have bigger plans this year… stay tuned 👀
— Jake (@jakeow) June 7, 2018
Many people have been speculating that JAKE has decided to try his hand at a casting gig. He would be analyzing the games and breaking them down much like how the desk does on OWL. Other people guess that maybe JAKE would become a coach, taking advantage of his in-game knowledge and experience to help a team succeed. As of right now, there are no official statements or plans, but we will be sure to update you when they occur.
EXHIBIT B: Aero tells all
The Head Coach of Team USA for the 2018 Overwatch World Cup is @Aero_OW, who let us in on some details about this year’s tournament. Apparently, the tryouts are underway with the twenty-five best players in the U.S. internally scrimming against each other. The players have been separated into four groups, each named for one of the American presidents on Mount Rushmore. So, we know that we have Team George (Washington), Team Theodore (Roosevelt), Team Abraham (Lincoln) and Team Thomas (Jefferson).
The four teams’ members have not been officially announced, but there have been some posts on Twitter from various professional Overwatch players hinting at certain team compositions.
Which brings us to…
EXHIBIT C: BABYBAY BOASTS
A well-known member of the San Francisco Shock OWL team, Andrej “babybay” Francisty posted this picture on his Twitter with the hashtag #GEORGEGANG, suggesting the members depicted as being in the George group of the tryout teams. Notably, we can see Shane “Rawkus” Flaherty alongside Matt “Coolmatt” Dias of the Houston Outlaws team. To their right are SFS members Moth, babybay, Super and Gladiators’ esteemed DPS Hydration. There is certainly a lot of talent on the 2018 Team USA Overwatch World Cup roster.
EXHIBIT D: TEAM USA EATS KBBQ
In this Twitter post, the official 2018 Team USA Overwatch World Cup
page posted a picture of (nearly) all the tryout contestants. Among them are Rawkus and Muma, but you can also see Russell “FCTFCTN” Campbell near the back of the table. In another tweet, the general manager of Team USA, Scott Tester, tweeted that many members of the full tryout roster couldn’t make it due to previous commitments; that is perhaps why we don’t see Coolmatt and others.
BONUS: DANTEH IS CANADIAN?
In this tweet from San Francisco Shock Overwatch League player, Danteh, he reflects on a funny conversation he recently had with Houston’s Rawkus:
after a week of team usa tryouts…
— Danteh (@Danteh) June 28, 2018
So, we have a few members of the Houston Outlaws contending for the 2018 Team USA Overwatch World Cup spot. Hopefully we’ll see more of them and get a full roster announced soon. It would be great to see certain Houston team members showcase their skills on the world stage yet again. It would definitely be a good match to watch while we wait for Overwatch League Season Two to begin.
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Featured image courtesy of @outlawsow Twitter
