Following yet another disappointing season, the Seattle Surge have released their entire roster from the 2021 Call of Duty League. This was the expectation all along, as the rift between Seattle and its players was evident during the season.
Sam “Octane” Larew and coach Joey “Nubzy” DiGiacomo were the only members of the Surge to survive the 2020 offseason. Seattle signaled they could move forward with both after a tumultuous inaugural season. However, even with a roster that Octane and Nubzy put together themselves, another year of online Call of Duty sank the Surge. The entirety of Seattle’s roster will start fresh in 2022.
Seattle Surge looking ahead to 2022 with its roster
Thank you @OctaneSam, @Prestinni, @Classic, @Gunless, @Loony, and @JoeyNubzy for being a part of this team.
We are especially grateful for the heart and effort you showed throughout your time with the Surge. Wishing you all the best in your future endeavors. pic.twitter.com/rlziUDgl7r
— Seattle Surge (@SeattleSurge) August 20, 2021
At times, especially on LAN, Seattle seemed like a team that could surprise their opponents. Despite going on a 10-game losing streak during the season, they were improving towards the tail-end of the year. They even managed to take down Atlanta FaZe at the Stage 5 Major in one of the biggest upsets ever.
However, after the season ended, Octane and Nubzy publicly called out the Surge. Nubzy claimed he and the rest of the roster wanted to sign rookie phenom Eli “Standy” Bentz prior to the season beginning but Seattle’s management declined. Of course, Standy is now having a breakout year for the Minnesota Røkkr, which only made the wound sting even more.
Octane/Nubzy wanted to pick up Standy as a substitute heading into the Cold War season 👀
Octane’s top 10 Cold War players: https://t.co/EuSscBNcIp pic.twitter.com/lZW8R9ufCV
— CDL Intel (@intelCDL) August 11, 2021
This was seemingly the final straw for Nubzy and Octane. It’s unclear if the other members of the roster, like Pierce “Gunless” Hillman and Preston “Prestinni” Sanderson, wanted to stay on for 2022 or not, but Octane and Nubzy made it apparent they wanted to leave the Surge.
Now Seattle must rebuild once again. This time, though, they don’t have a franchise cornerstone to build off like they did last season. The team will likely let the offseason unfold and see what players get released before making any moves.
As for the former Surge players, they’ll presumably do the same. It’s not hard to envision players like Gunless and Prestinni landing on a starting roster, but the likes of Nick “Classic” DiCostanzo and Danny “Loony” Loza could struggle to find a spot.
