Close, but no million: Y professor comes up short on ‘Survivor’
John Cochran was crowned Sole Survivor and won the one million dollars on the 26th season of SURVIVOR: CARAMOAN -- FANS vs. FAVORITES during the live reunion show broadcast from Los Angeles on Sunday, May 12 on the CBS Television Network.
Photo: Trae Patton/CBS 2013 Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved
Dawn Meehan on the red carpet during the SURVIVOR: CARAMOAN -- FAN vs. FAVORITES FINALE, live from Los Angeles, Sunday, May 12 on the CBS Television Network.
Photo: Trae Patton/CBS2013 Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved
(L-R) Sherri Biethman, Winner: John Cochran, Dawn Meehan. The cast of the 26th the season of SURVIVOR: CARAMOAN -- FAN vs. FAVORITES on the red carpet from Los Angeles, Sunday, May 12 on the CBS Television Network.
Photo: Trae Patton/CBS 2013 Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved
After a wild ride that saw her go all the way to the final three and face the music from a jury of her fellow contestants, Brigham Young University English professor Dawn Meehan came up short in the season-ending installment of “Survivor: Caramoan — Fans vs. Favorites.” Law student John Cochran, who partnered with Meehan all season long and assured her seat in the game’s Final Three, took the big $1 million prize over Meehan and business owner Sherri Biethman.
Meehan endured a torrent of abuse from fans in recent days after making a controversial decision to eject a close ally from the game. The name-calling ran the gamut from faceless fans to high-profile public figures — Bill Simmons, founder and editor of ESPN’s Grantland sports and pop culture website, called her loathsome and creepy on Twitter — and escalated to the point that Meehan canceled her own Twitter account over the weekend.
The flagellation continued at the game’s final tribal council, shown Sunday night on CBS, when Brenda Lowe, the former ally on the wrong side of Meehan’s vote, used her jury time to essentially humiliate Meehan. Meehan has false teeth in her lower jaw held in place by a retainer. At an earlier stage of the game, after Meehan lost her teeth in an island lagoon, prompting a emotional display of despair. Lowe, a strong swimmer, obligingly searched for the retainer and recovered it.
Lowe felt a strong personal connection to Meehan after the incident and appeared heartbroken when voted out of the game by several players — including Meehan — on an episode that aired Wednesday. At the final tribal council, a visibly angered Lowe dared Meehan to remove her teeth in front of the jury, which Meehan did.
Meehan, Lowe and Cochran all began the game as “favorites,” popular players from prior seasons, pitted against a tribe of “fans” (including Biethman), first-time players with a long-standing interest in “Survivor.” Cochran and Meehan previously played together on “Survivor: South Pacific,” a season that also featured rancher and Provo native Rick Nelson (who lives in Aurora).
Despite the fact that Cochran turned on Meehan during “South Pacific,” engineering her ouster before being quickly voted out himself, the two formed an immediate and strong alliance on “Caramoan.” Working together the entire game, they entered and exited various larger alliances, coolly manipulating their way to the finale.
Cochran performed better than Meehan in individual challenges, winning several, including the final immunity challenge in the season finale that aired Sunday. The final challenge involved both endurance and brainpower, with contestants retrieving bags of puzzle pieces before assembling a wooden puzzle. Cochran’s victory permitted him to hold strong sway over the final tribal council — which determined the final three contestants, who then addressed the jury Sunday night — and he chose to remain loyal to Meehan instead of opening the door for firefighter Eddie Fox.
After the results of the jury’s deliberations were revealed, with Cochran winning every vote, Meehan, Cochran and the entire “Caramoan” cast recapped the highs and lows (and Lowes) of the season in a one-hour live reunion show (“Survivor” seasons are taped several months before they air) with longtime “Survivor” host Jeff Probst.
