“Survivor 47” runner-up Sam Phalen struggled going right into the aftershow after losing the jury vote against Rachel LaMont.
“It’s very hard. You don’t get a ton of answers about why everything happened the way it happened,” Phalen, 24, exclusively told the Post the day after coming in second place during the finale.
The sports reporter also admitted he was in “emotional turmoil” after coming up short against LaMont, 34, at the final tribal council.
Read Phalen’s full interview below.
New York Post: What jury votes did you think you could get heading into final tribal?
Sam Phalen: I felt like I had Sierra and Kyle in my corner and would be able to get their votes. Gabe was another one that I was pretty confident with the argument that I planned to make and the type of performance that I planned to have at final tribal, that it would be something that would win Gabe’s vote over. That night I was really trying to pitch Andy and Teeny, who I felt were super in the air and could have swung either way.
I felt like it was going to be very tight, very close. I knew I needed 5. I knew Sue’s not voting for me if she’s breaking the tie in a 4-4.
So was Sierra’s vote the one that shocked you the most?
Yeah. Definitely. I thought Sierra would have for sure been a vote for me.
Was it your plan to go against what Rachel was saying at final tribal so much?
I knew Rachel had played a loud game. A game that was tangible and seen. Necklaces and an idol play and these things that the jury can really get behind and get excited about. And I knew a lot of the stuff that I had been doing that allowed me to have some control on the game and survive was not that way. And so in order to make my game loud and seen, I was going to have to be loud and seen that night. I was going to have to pull no punches and come for Rachel’s neck. I told her as much going in. I’m like, ‘Hey, I’m going to war tonight. I hope you’re ready.’ And she absolutely was. It was very fun to be able to go off one another and knock each other out and knock each other down and keep trying to differentiate ourselves to stand out. It was a really fun battle.
Have any of the jurors told you why they didn’t vote for you?
No, I haven’t got much of that. A lot of people feel like, you know, I won the final tribal council. At least that’s what I’ve been been told by a lot of people that were there that night who feel like I really made it a very difficult choice for them. I think it was a really close run. The votes don’t always necessarily reflect how torn some people could be in their decision making. I’m very proud of the way I represented my game that night and I think I opened a lot of people’s eyes to it.
How was your mental state doing the aftershow right after learning you lost the game?
It’s very hard. You don’t get a ton of answers about why everything happened the way it happened. And so you’re trying to put on a brave face and you’re trying to be graceful. I was really trying to let Rachel have her moment and be celebrated and have this cool celebration of our season. And in the back of your mind of course you’re like, ‘Why didn’t this person vote for me? What happened here? I felt like it was going so well.’ You’re asking yourself those questions. So it is emotional turmoil, you know, and a difficult place to be reflecting on the game and the journey that we all just experienced when you haven’t had the closure of reflecting on it with the people you did it. Tough seat to be in.
What would you have done if you won the final immunity challenge instead of Rachel?
It’s hard to say just because where my brain is now, I’m not sure is necessarily what my brain was in the moment. I do feel pretty strongly I’d make fire against Rachel. I’m a take the last shot kind of a person. And that’s how I played the game. Aggressive, all out, trying everything and taking it into my own hands. And I think I would have really wanted my story to end taking it into my own hands against Rachel in fire. If I would’ve won immunity, I’d like to think I’d have stepped up and made fire against Rachel.
