‘Survivor: Cagayan’ exit interview: Jefra Bland on alliances, Spencer’s move, and more
It’s always hard to be voted off on “Survivor,” but to be voted off in a blindside so near the end of the game has to be the hardest, especially when there was a move you could have made that might’ve given you a different outcome. But do we really blame Jefra Bland? One of the issues that came up with her flipping would be a tiebreaker vote, and this is one of the subjects we touch on with her in our exit interview.
This chat was conducted Thursday during a conference call with reporters, and it also includes her reaction to finding out that it was Spencer who really started to get Tony going down the road to Paranoid City before tribal council took place.
CarterMatt – One of the big parts of your story the past few weeks has been your decision to not flip over to Tasha, Jeremiah, and Spencer. How much of that was brought on by you not wanting to tie the vote and draw rocks, and by you not being able to get someone else to flip with you?
When I left that reward challenge that day with Tash and her alliance, I felt pretty certain that I could convince either Kass or Trish to flip with me, because they were just as mad and bitter about the LJ vote as I was. But when I got back to camp, it looked like Tony had been blowing smoke at them all day, and telling them how we needed to stick together and they were believing it. Neither one of them really wanted to hear me out at all when it came to flipping.
I wasn’t willing to take the risk draw rocks when I knew that I could be safe with them. It wasn’t an easy decision for me, and there was a lot more into it than what was shown. There was a really long time with me talking with Trish at the well, convincing her and convincing her that this was not a good decision. The same thing with Kass, we had a long conversation down at the beach. Neither one of them were willing to flip with me.
Let’s talk about Kass for a second. What was your take on her? For someone who called herself ‘Chaos Kass’ this season, she really hasn’t done that much to cause chaos since [the Sarah vote].
She kept calling herself a villain, which I didn’t understand at all. I really didn’t see her playing a villain game, outside of blindsiding Sarah. I’m kind of like you. I don’t see much chaos. She’s kind of Team Tony right now at this point in the game.
So what was your end plan, had Spencer gone home and your alliance had taken out Tasha the next week? Was your final three plan Trish and Kass, or something different?
I had two options. I wanted to go with definitely Kass, because I knew it was a very bitter jury and they were still boiling about the move that she had made with Sarah. So I wanted to take her with me because I didn’t think she would get a single vote.
My other option, which I was still feeling out, was to go with Trish, who I had felt like we had played a similar game. She was a social player like was, and I had as big of a hand of getting Kass to flip over, which wasn’t shown. It looks like it was more Trish, but I had a big incident with Sarah and Kass that morning, kind of stirring the pot to get Sarah mad at Kass. There were several other things, and I felt like I had an even [chance] against her.
Or, I would’ve figured out how to get rid of Trish and take Woo with me. I don’t think Woo has played a strong game. He’s just in Tony’s back pocket, so to speak.
What did you think about the move that Spencer made last night, where he really got Tony going [in terms of] getting rid of you?
I was shocked because during my time on the island, I was just sure that it was all Tony. So props to Spencer for being able to pull that off. I know that it was the only gameplay he had left. Obviously it doesn’t make me happy, knowing that he did that because that was the reason I went home, but obviously it’s a game and that was his only option and lucky for him it worked in his favor. I was shocked to see he’s playing such a strong game.
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Are you sad to see Jefra leave “Survivor: Cagayan,” and who are you rooting for now with her gone? Share your thoughts below, and head over to the link here if you want to read our full take on last night’s new episode. You can also sign up now to grab some further TV updates via our CarterMatt Newsletter.
Photo: CBS