Blog 4 - Personal Rivalries Carry Over
So we've come down to the two teams that I hate, not because of any ethic dilemmas or controversies, but because of who they represent and the owners of the teams. The two that will be covered are the Boston Uprising and the Philadelphia Fusion.
Like ripping off a BandAid, it's best to get the stuff you dislike out of the way quickly. My own personal biases aside, the next blog will cover two teams that are new to the Overwatch League: the Paris Eternal and the Toronto Defiant.
Boston Uprising
Coach and Management
The Uprising is owned by Robert Kraft of the Kraft group, the same organization that owns the New England Patriots. My knowledge about football and the NFL is probably as average as you can get, but even I have the decency and obligation to hate the Patriots and Tom Brady. That being said, let's talk about the two main staffers of the Boston Uprising. Chris 'HuK' Loranger is the general manager/President of Gaming for the Boston Uprising. HuK has been in the competitive Overwatch scene since 2016, acting as an commentator and analyst for tournaments until being picked up as the GM of Toronto Esports Overwatch Team. He is aided by MyungJ 'Seowulf' Seo who is the Team Manager.
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| Chris "HuK" Loranger |
Players
Like other teams, the Boston Uprising had a spring cleaning for their roster. They traded three players to other League teams - of which one retired before the team released its roster, and did not renew the contracts of three other players. They cancelled one player's contract in the middle of the League's first season on account of allegations of sexual misconduct. The Uprising also has some two-way players that will not be included in this roster list.
Tanks
Starting off in the Tank category is Noh 'Gamsu' Young-jin, a returning player for the Uprising, having only played with Korean team CONBOX, but had played professional League of Legends for teams like Team Dignitas and Fnatic. Lucas "NotE" Meissner is the second returning player for the Boston team. The Canadian tank player left the Toronto Esports team with HuK and was signed to the Uprising shortly after leaving. The final tank player is Park "Axxiom" Min-seob, who also came from Toronto Esports.
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| Axxiom |
Damage
With only two players in the Damage category, the Uprising does boast the only New Zealand player Kelsey "Colourhex" Birse who has been on the Australian Contenders team the Sydney Drop Bears and - like Axxoim and HuK - Toronto Esports. The only other damage player is Jeffery "blasé" Tsang, who came form Gladiators Legion, the academy team for the League team the LA Gladiators.
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| Jeffery "blasé" Tsang |
Support
The first support player is Denmark-born Kristian "Kellex" Keller, despite only winning a few tournament titles, Kellex has played competitively shortly after the release of Overwatch on teams like Team Singularity and the Fragsters. The second Uprising support is Min-seok "AimGod" Kwon, formerly of Ardeont and Meta Bellum. Renan "alemao" Moretto of Brasil is the Uprising's newest member and the League's only South American player, but has many first place tournament wins under his belt.
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| AimGod |
Philadelphia Fusion
While the Uprising and Mayhem had a roster purge, the only roster changes they did was adding a support player from their academy team on a two-way contract. Although their games have been very inconsistent, this team was the runner-up in the Overwatch League's Inaugural Season Playoffs. My personal dislike for the team is based on location and ownership. Because my dad was born and raised in Pittsburgh, hatred for anything Philly was always there when growing up. The other reason is that they are owned by Comcast Spectator, a subsidiary of the telecommunications conglomerate of the same name, Comcast.
Coach and Management
The Fusion is owned by Tucker Roberts, the son of Comcast's CEO. He is aided two co-coaches: Se-hwi "NamedHwi" Go who coached three teams prior (BK Stars, Laser Kittens, and FaZe Clan), and another seasoned coach Elliot Hayes, formerly of eUnited, REUNITED, and many others. These co-coaches are helped by the assistant coach Christopher "ChrisTFer" Graham who was with Elliot Hayes as they coached Choke gaming, among a myriad of other teams.
Players
Tank
The Fusion boasts three amazing tank players. The first is French born Gael "Poko" Gouzerch who won many titles while playing for GamersOrigin before being picked up by the Fusion. Next is Joona "Fragi" Laine, a Finnish player who played for teams like Ninjas In Pyjamas and Team Gigantti. The last tank is Su-min "SADO" Kim, who failed to play in the first 30 games of the season due to Code of Conduct infractions. Since being able to play, he has become a mainstay in the team and become the team's main tank player.
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| Su-min "SADO" Kim Source: https://blizzard.gamespress.com/Esports-Overwatch#?tab=photos |
Damage
Not to be outdone by the tanks, the players in the damage category are just as well known for their skill. Among the most recognized name on the Fusion is Jae-hyeok "Carpe" Lee. Carpe was a star on his former teams BK Stars and FaZe Clan, but being on the Fusion is no different. The other player is Josue/Josh "Eqo" Corona, the only player from Isreal, who was picked up from Zengaming eSports to be on the Philadelphia Fusion.
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| Jae-hyeok "Carpe" Lee Source: https://blizzard.gamespress.com/Esports-Overwatch |
Support
Isaac "Boombox" Charles is the first support player for the Fusion. He was picked up after multiple wins with his former team eUnited. The second and last support player is Alberto "neptuNo" González. He is a seasoned player, having played for teams since 2016 that include Movistar Riders, Cloud9 EU, and NoNameYet.
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| Issac "Boombox" Charles Source: https://blizzard.gamespress.com/Esports-Overwatch |
Like ripping off a BandAid, it's best to get the stuff you dislike out of the way quickly. My own personal biases aside, the next blog will cover two teams that are new to the Overwatch League: the Paris Eternal and the Toronto Defiant.
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