Leading the Pack – CDL’s MVP Frontrunner

Right now, the Call of Duty League’s Stage 1 Major is looking to be one of the most-hyped tournaments in recent memory. So many storylines are coming into play this weekend - can the Atlanta FaZe rebound from their Champs loss and continue their dominant streak against teams they have not faced yet? Is OpTic Chicago capable of overcoming their rivals and proving they have what it takes to be the best? Can the New York Subliners or another dark horse team play spoiler in the bracket? And, of course, can the Dallas Empire retain their grasp on the throne as the kings of Call of Duty?

A lot to focus on, and a lot to talk about when it comes to the Stage 1 Major. The group matches were already wild enough, and the more you think about it, the spicier this major is looking to be. It’ll solidify a lot of things for the rest of the season, the definitive top dog, the best teams in the league, and the front-runners for the MVP conversation. 

Almost every team has been playing it incredibly close. Maps are going the distance, series are going the distance, things have never been tighter. So far, it really comes down to those key differences and x-factors in the players performing on that day that will give their respective teams the win. There are only a handful that really have been standouts, only a few players that have been playing at a calibre to really say that these guys are some of the most valuable in the whole league. Certainly, players like Chris "Simp" Lehr for the Atlanta FaZe, Thomas "TJHaLy" Haly for the LA Thieves, Matthew "Skrapz" Marshall from the Paris Legion, or Brandon "Dashy" Otell of the Chicago OpTic, are all great candidates for the MVP conversation. All have had an incredible impact on their rosters, and all of them have really been putting in the work for their squads, but of all the great picks available, there’s one player who’s really separated himself from his peers. 

There’s one guy who has been tearing it up, one player who has seemingly never had a bad game this season even during his team’s only loss so far. All things considered, going into the major, it’s really Dallas Empire’s Cuyler "Huke" Garland’s tournament to take. 

Huke is one of the best SMG players, if not the best in the game. If his counterpart Anthony "Shotzzy" Cuevas-Castro was recognized for his contributions to the Empire last year, Huke has to be recognized as the magician for them this year. His timing, his flanks, his ability to easily win challenges, Huke does it all with speed and power. On any map, he’s always capable of putting in respectable to incredible numbers, and it seems his map movement is always capable of just hampering teams down throughout a series. In the Respawns or Search, Huke is putting in the work in every single series, and sometimes it’s his consistency that has given Dallas the edge they needed to pull a series back from the brink. 

For instance, against the LA Thieves, the number two team in their group, a lot of the success in that 3-0 came from Huke’s jukes to keep the Thieves from gaining a foothold in the series. Top fragging on Hardpoint and Control, Huke was a maniac in the server, and a huge reason as to why Dallas is capable of playing keep away in so many of their games. Without him performing at the level he does every match, who’s to say they even land an upper bracket spot in their group. Four map fives in five matches for the Empire, and in every single game you can see Huke serving it to teams, hardly ever faltering. 

Even in their one loss against the Minnesota RØKKR, Huke was top fragging and making the plays to keep his team alive. It wasn’t enough to save the series that time, but the aggression, the smoothness of his movement, Huke is very simply the biggest threat in the league right now, and he will bury any team’s chances if given the chance. He will win you a game, he will make the space to put himself in the best position possible, and it’s the sign and mark of a true star of Call of Duty.

The number two highest K/D of the stage, and the number one player to look out for heading into the major and into the rest of the season. If he pulls off a win here, it’ll be very difficult for anyone else’s name to come up and really be in the discussion for overtaking Huke as the 2021 MVP. Right now, there is nothing that can stop this man from being a disgustingly good force of nature in a match. Dread it, run from it, Huke’s dominance arrives all the same, and if trends stay the same, so does his MVP trophy. 

All images via Activision