In case you didn’t stay tuned to see the previews of “Survivor’s” Season 23, Episode 4, Jeff Probst announced, “At Savaii the new mastermind is … Cochran!” The camera cuts to show Jim and Cochran shaking hands as Cochran says, “Alright, done deal.” Then, in a solo shot, Cochran proclaims, “This is the perfect opportunity to devastate Ozzy.” Once again, with Jim and Cochran together, Jim does his Muhammad Ali impression while grinning from ear to ear and boasts, “It’s a Survivor move.” To which, a proud Cochran responds, ” Yeah. Yeah, I know.” But if only it was that simple.
Twenty-four year old John Cochran caught the attention of many “Survivor” fans as he boldly suggested – in his pink, button-down dress shirt and red sweater vest in Episode 1 – that Jeff Probst refer to him by his last name, in the spirit of Donaldsons, Penners, and Marianos past. Who is this character, and what has he done with the real Woody Allen? As the first three episodes of Season 23 unfolded, fans got to see more of this self-proclaimed “Survivor” fanatic, who is a Harvard law student and author of an award-winning essay on the jury system in the game of “Survivor.”
Cochran’s tribe, Savaii, has made the trek to Tribal Council two out of the three episodes so far, where he was a viable candidate for Redemption Island both times. Yet fans of the show seem to love him, perhaps for much the same reason we root for the bull in a Spanish bullfight. It’s hard to tell at this point in the game how much of his vulnerability is real and how much is a façade. Certainly he is a strategist with a high level of intelligence. When you combine those traits with his unquestionable savoir-faire, he might just be the player to pull a fast one on our beloved Ozzy.
Let’s not forget, however, that Ozzy has the Hidden Immunity Idol. If he gets wind of Cochran’s plan and survives an attempted mutiny, it’s not going to fare well for our “Survivor” hero wannabe. The key to Cochran’s plan may just lie in who he is able to recruit for this intrepid move. Remember that Ozzy confided his Idol possession to Keith, who very quickly shared that information with Whitney. If Keith or Whitney team up with Cochran and divulge that Ozzy has the Idol, they may just have a fair shot at devising a plan to take Ozzy out of the game – or at least send him to Redemption Island. Good luck, Cochran – we’re rooting for you!