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OpTic Texas has made yet another change to their Call of Duty lineup hours after placing Indervir “iLLeY” Dhaliwal on restricted free agency. The team just signed rising Call of Duty Challengers star Daniel “Ghosty” Rothe to fill in for iLLeY for the 2023 Call of Duty League season.
Going to the official CoD amateur circuit, Challengers, to recruit a player for one of the most watched lineups mid-CDL season is definitely a brave move, even for OpTic Texas. The team is most likely betting on Ghosty’s raw talent and potential to make him a great addition to their current trio.
With iLLeY in restricted free agency, the active roster consists of Brandon “Dashy” Otell, Cuyler “Huke” Garland, and Anthony “Shotzzy” Cuevas-Castro.
OpTic Texas has made several roster changes since the start of the 2022 Vanguard season. iLLeY and Dashy Otell were dropped on several occasions this season before being taken back. Seth “Scump” Abner, OpTic Texas’ star player, also announced his retirement from competition following the team’s first week into the Major two qualifiers.
Huke was brought in to fill in for Scump for the rest of the Major two, and the team reportedly went to the Boston LAN tournament with minimal expectations despite a good start at the qualifiers.
OpTic Texas ended their run in the competition in fourth place after enduring consecutive defeats at the hands of Minnesota Røkkr and, finally, the tournament’s runners-up, the Los Angeles Thieves. The result was significantly better than their performance at Major 1, which placed them in 9-12th place.
Despite the improvement, iLLeY announced on February 8 that he had been moved to restricted free agency and would not be a part of OpTic Gaming’s lineup from Major 3 onwards.
While OpTic’s decision to sign Ghosty surprised much of the CoD community, the player has built an impressive track record over the years. Ghosty has played competitive CoD for over half a decade and notably participated in Advanced Warfare’s MLG GameBattles Amateur tournaments in 2015.
Ghosty has been a part of the Challengers’ play for several squads across Modern Warfare, Vanguard Modern Warfare 2, and Cold War since the inception of CDL. The player also participated in collegiate CoD for the University of Illinois.
The Challengers star’s stock has risen significantly over the past year after his time on both the official and unofficial Boston Breach academy teams. Ghosty’s stint with the TFeL/Decimate Gaming squad has also added to the player’s appeal.
Under the banner of Decimate Gaming, the player most recently gave a breakout performance when he won the Call of Duty Challengers Open at Major 2. Decimate finished in first place after beating out RØKKR Academy in the tournament’s grand finals.
Ghosty was also placed second in the Elite Stage 1 playoffs and named the Challengers NA Elite Stage One MVP after producing the highest Hardpoint K/D and overall K/D in the entire field of players. The player has consistently retained a top placement in Challengers competitions.
Ghosty was initially to make his CDL debut under the Florida Mutineers, who are currently making significant roster changes. However, the deal did not pull through, and the situation flipped after OpTic Texas started making inquiries about a new talent to sign.
The Florida Mutinners are yet to lock their roster in after the plans with Ghosty fell through.
Call of Duty League’s Major Three qualifiers are slated to kick off on February 17.
