In just a few days’ time, the entire Call of Duty League will gather at the Mystic Lake Center in Minnesota for Major II, which has the potential to be even better than watching OpTic Texas take home their first trophy in more than 1,100 days. While there are certain storylines to keep an eye on at the event, it’s the players that make CDL events like Major II worth watching.
The CDL is perhaps more competitive this season than any other. It seems like any team can take a match, no matter the opponents, thanks to the plethora of all-star caliber players competing every week. While multiple players are heading into CDL Major II with storylines associated with them, there are three players fans should watch above all else.
1. Seth “Scump” Abner
The captain of the OpTic Texas, Scump has been an unsung hero so far this season. He’s consistently competing with the most talented SMGs in the CDL and often besting them. While he’s nearing age 27 and is already the oldest SMG in the league, he’s still showing why he’s the king of Call of Duty.
For OpTic to repeat their success from Major I, Scump needs to continue the blazing path he’s been on since February. Scump could be considered the X-factor of this team. When he’s playing well, the entire team is firing on all cylinders. When Scump turns in a bad game, though, the OpTic Texas are noticeably worse.
2. Sam “Octane” Larew
Coming into the 2022 season, few AR players were stronger than Octane. He was consistently at the top of individual player KDs the past two seasons playing on the Seattle Surge.
Of course, those teams were abysmal at best, leading to Octane going home to the LA Thieves. With a much-improved team around him, fans assumed Octane would continue his reign at the top of the CDL.
So far this season, that has not yet happened. In fact, Octane is one of the worst-performing players in the CDL this year. He’s even admitted himself that he’s not played well, which played a part in the LA Thieves going 0-5 in the Major II qualifiers.
The expectations for LA at the Major aren’t high, but if Octane turns in another poor performance on LAN, fans might call for the Thieves to drop the perennial all-star.
3. Travis “Neptune” McCloud
The New York Subliners have gone through a flurry of roster changes in 2022. These changes culminated with the benching of James “Clayster” Eubanks. Neptune has been at the center of the changes, being initially dropped and then reinstated. While he started off the season poorly, he’s turned in three straight top-notch performances.
Perhaps it’s a coincidence Neptune started performing better when Clayster was benched and replaced by Paul “PaulEhx” Avila. Regardless, Neptune is one of the main reasons for the Subliner’s turnaround in the qualifiers. This uptick in performance has landed New York a winners bracket spot in Major II, where they’ll face the Atlanta FaZe in round one.
If New York wants to make a run at CDL Major II, Neptune needs to continue his hot streak against Atlanta.
