Challenge Double Agents Player Preview: Devin Walker
Through four seasons of the Challenge, Devin’s story-line on the Challenge has been his rivalry/hatred for Johnny Bananas. For the first time on a main season of the Challenge, Devin will be competing without Bananas on it, and you have to wonder what his goal will be. When it comes to Devin, the concept of him winning the game never existed because you could tell his only goal was to eliminate Bananas. He’s always labeled himself as a puppet-master type, but nothing he has done on this show yet would display that. Devin got left off the cast three seasons in a row; the guy has to show us something this season if he wants the keep this spot on the show.
Introducing Devin: His original show is Are You The One Season 3, the greatest AYTO season. Devin was a significant figure on this show as he quickly gained the affection of a couple of girls, and it was his goal to hook up with as many as possible. His spot got blown up real-quick by Nelson, and from there, Devin had to settle for one girl, to which he had a somewhat manipulative relationship with a girl named Kiki. It’s actually how his “rivalry” with Cheyenne began as she wasn’t a fan of how Kiki was getting treated.
Cheyenne and Devin partnered for Rivals 3 fresh off filming AYTO. They got eliminated first and hold the embarrassing stat of losing an elimination to Jessica McCain. Due to Brandon/Briana quitting and Leroy/Averey leaving due to Leroy’s medical DQ, MTV decided to bring Devin and Cheyenne back for a second chance. They did nothing significant in the daily challenges except narrowly escaping last-place every week. The team was then nominated for multiple eliminations and kept pulling White Skulls all the way to the final. They performed terribly in the final, finishing in dead-last. Devin at least proved to be a good guy by splitting the money with Cheyenne, defending her when Johnny and Big Mini Johnny were picking on her, and separating Tony from Camila for Camila’s safety on Rivals 3. Sidenote: he also hooked up with Camila this season. Devin forged a friendship with Wes on this season, and he made an impact in the confessional/entertainment aspect.
MTV then made use of Devin’s Rivals 3 fame to make him the face of the AYTO Spin-Off Second Chances, to which he won, defeating Tori in the final, as well as Adam Kuhn from Exes 2. Devin then appeared on Dirty 30 and got purged on Day 1. He took this early loss to heart and got in better shape for Vendettas. Devin did decently in the daily challenges, excelling in those which took less athleticism and showed adeptness in heights/balance oriented comps. His big moment was eliminating Johnny Bananas in a weird On/Off switch game. Regardless, he took his swing and hit a home-run. At final seven, Devin got purged after coming in last-place in what was essentially a foot-race.
Originally, Devin was supposed to be Bananas partner on Final Reckoning, then the untimed passing of his father occurred, and he left to bereave. After a few weeks of grieving, Devin got the opportunity to re-enter the game as a mercenary with Cory. They beat Zach/Amanda and Da’Vonne/Jozea in elimination to join the main game. In theory, they were set-up well as Cory’s Team Young Bucks allies were on two different teams, and they had the majority power in the game. Then pasta-gate happened, Cory DQ’d himself and Devin, and there was the ill-fated night where Devin followed Bananas around all night after Bananas called Nelson a r*t**d. It’s been three seasons since we’ve seen Devin, and he’s gotten himself in better shape. The problem is, he has less zest than he did a few years ago in terms of fan interest.
Player Vitals
Devin Walker: 31 Years Old, 6'1, 180ish lbs, 4 Seasons, 1x Finalist, 3–1 Elimination Record, Highest Finish: 3rd Place Rivals 3
Skills and Physical Strength: He is not an athlete, plain and simple. Devin has gotten himself into better shape and, from a fitness level, is in better condition to run, swim, carry weight, etc. However, when it comes to a Pole Wrestle, Hall Brawl, or dead-sprint, I wouldn’t say I like Devin’s chances unless it’s against one of the smaller guys like Jay or Wes. Even then, it’s not a guarantee. Wes got one of his few physical eliminations wins this decade by beating Devin on Champs vs. Stars 3 in a wrestle similar to the game Melissa and Nany played last season. Considering Wes has gotten squashed by Bear and Dario in recent years, that isn’t a good look for Devin.
As mentioned above, Devin has shown prowess in heights challenges. Part of the success is that he does have a fearlessness to him that’s commendable. For Devin, the Challengers he needs to study to be like are Ashley and Wes because they aren’t the best raw athletes, but they cut the right corners to put themselves in contention with the best. With the Red Skull twist, Devin has to pick and choose who his elimination opponent carefully. He may also have to worry about people seeing him as a weaker player.
SSMP (Social, Strategic, Mental, and Political) Game: Devin is a decent social player who wants too badly to be a political and strategic threat. On the Challenge, you aren’t one unless you win daily challenges to gain the power necessary to make moves, and Devin doesn’t have a great history with those. Stirring the pot will put a target on his back, and on this cast, he ranks closer to the bottom as an athlete. Devin needs to be the guy you want to have a beer with to succeed.
In terms of the mental game, Devin has dyslexia and generally struggles with puzzles. Yes, he is intelligent and a strong speaker, but the difference between him and people like Cory and Nelson in a puzzle isn’t that grandiose. I mean, he lost to Jenna in a mental portion in the Rivals 3 final.
Eliminations & Winning Potential: His elimination record is super deceiving. Of his three eliminations, two came simultaneously in that elimination where players had to jump and hang onto a laundry/zip-line and try to rock it enough to knock some tags off of it. Amanda and Zach had a significant lead on him and Cory, but for some reason, the final tag wouldn’t come off. Maybe it was a weight thing where you needed at least 180 lbs of force coming from both sides, and even then, that’s inherently a flawed elimination. Devin also only owns one loss because he’s gotten purged twice and DQ’d the other season. We’ve only seen Devin in carnival games, and I want to see him in a headbanger.
Can Devin win? In theory, he’s got good cardio, swimming ability, and while he isn’t great with puzzles, I wouldn’t be shocked if he were to pull one out in the clutch. Getting there is the issue, and I think it’s more likely he is an early boot rather than in contention in the end-game.
Devin’s Overall Rating: 76/100 (+2 from Vendettas)
Vendettas Rating: 74/100
Dirty 30 Rating: 78/100
