Survivor: Edge of Extinction: Final predictions before premiere

So as we head into the Survivor: Edge of Extinction premiere airing on CBS tomorrow night, why not share some of our first predictions for how things are going to go? It’s a semi-annual tradition here, though it’s admittedly more of a challenge this time with the new twist. It’s still hard to fathom how it’s going to work, so we almost have to take it out of our mind here and predict players as though this is a normal season.

Related Survivor video – Be sure to check out our new discussion of this very topic below! Meanwhile, subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube for some more information and remember to check out our show playlist.

Our track record for predictions is decidedly mixed — last season, Alison was our preseason winner pick and she made it to the finale! Yet, we also said that Mike and Elizabeth would be the first two players voted out on their tribes and each one of them made the merge.

The first person voted out – Ron Clark. Ironically, Ron is the only new contestant this time with a Wikipedia page … not that the players out there are going to know that. We think that him being a motivational speaker/educator suggests that he’s going to be one of those people who constantly want to be heard, and that doesn’t play all that well on there on the island when you have very little sleep. Also, returning players are more likely mentors than Ron.

Personal favorite entering the game – Out of the returning players, it would probably be Kelley Wentworth, given that she brings that perfect combination of entertainment and also gameplay. However, when it comes to the newbies, we do actually like Rick Devens — it’s basically the goofy dad out on Survivor and there’s something kind of appealing to that. He doesn’t look like he’ll do particularly well, but looks can be deceiving.

Strongest returning player – Aubry Bracco. She’s the most capable of going under the radar early, and she’s got the strategic and social game where she is not going to be a target for people almost immediately after the merge.

Our winner prediction – Julia Carter. On paper, we just think that Julia’s someone people are really going to want to be around. She seems like she’s a big fan of the game, she’s got an emotional connection to it, and she’s fond of Jeremy Collins. We think that she’s really malleable, and that’s really the best place to be entering the game. It’s almost impossible to imagine a situation in which she goes home early and in our mind, that is going to help her tremendously.

Related – Check out some more preseason coverage of Survivor: Edge of Extinction

What are your preseason Survivor: Edge of Extinction predictions? Share now in the comments. (Photo: CBS.)