The Call of Duty League offseason has just taken one of the biggest twists imaginable. OpTic Texas, the biggest brand in the league, dropped two of their star players Wednesday in Brandon “Dashy” Otell and Indervir “iLLeY” Dhaliwal. This move was completely unexpected, as OpTic owner Hector “H3CZ” Rodriguez recently stated that the 2022 roster would stay together.
However, the course of the 2022 free agency period likely shifted the team’s plans, as multiple big-name players have hit the open market.
Restricted F/A for 2023, hit my line if you're interested
— brandon (@DashySZN) August 17, 2022
Regardless of who is available, though, it’s shocking to see Dashy dropped. He recently had his team option extended by OpTic and was an MVP candidate this past season. Because he was extended, Dashy is now a restricted free agent. ILLeY, on the other hand, is an unrestricted free agent, meaning he can sign with whoever he chooses starting on Aug. 22. Dashy must work with OpTic Texas to facilitate a buyout to another team.
As of right now, there’s absolutely no indication of who OpTic could be going after to replace Dashy and iLLeY. There was a rumor from CDLScrimintel that Texas could be looking to sign Paco “HyDra” Rusiewiez. HyDra was reportedly going to fetch a contract in the neighborhood of $500,000 a year, which would make him the second-highest player in the CDL behind OpTic’s own Seth “Scump” Abner.
There was a rumor from Dexerto’s Jacob Hale that pins HyDra and former Minnesota player Dillon “Attach” Price to OpTic, though there’s “nothing set in stone yet,” according to Hale.
In regards to Dashy and iLLeY, there’s also no indication as to where they could end up. It was likely a shock to them to get dropped from OpTic, so they presumably will have to figure things out on the fly in terms of what roster they go to for the 2023 season. It does seem like at least iLLeY will certainly hold a little grudge next season, as he responded to his farewell tweet from OpTic with a simple line.
See yall next year.
— Surge iLLeY (@iLLeYYY) August 17, 2022
We’ll be keeping track of rostermania throughout the next few days, so stay turned for more news.
