The Wardog Has Been Preparing For 'Survivor' For Years

This season of Survivor has a combination of new rookie players and returning champions. In a way, you would imagine the veteran players would come out on top, but Dan "The Wardog" DaSilva could have what it takes to prove himself as a newbie. Because he has already brought his A-game, fans are wondering who the Wardog is on Survivor and likely restructuring their Survivor fantasy brackets.

So far this season he has downplayed his athletic abilities a little bit, but that's all in his strategy to build alliances and get his fellow competitors to trust him. Dan told Entertainment Tonight Canada that he planned to bring "a duplicitous nature" to the show to try and fool the other competitors right off the bat. He admitted that his tattoos and obvious military background might set off alarms for the other players but that he plans to come off as more of a "kindred spirit, a joker."

"I will be playing a completely different game for those first eight to nine days and kind of try to throw [the other players] off kilter," he said.

It might be hard, considering that he is this season's former military man and won a Bronze Star Medal in Afghanistan when he was still in the service. He also went through extensive training on his own for Survivor, including practicing deep diving, so he is as serious about this game as they come.

On Dan’s Survivor bio, he wrote that one of his pet peeves is weakness and that part of his reason for being on Survivor is to challenge himself "physically, mentally, and emotionally." He’s from New York but lives in Los Angeles and, judging by his Instagram, he’s close to his family. It doesn't look like he’s married or has any kids right now, but as he said in his bio, he has a "sharp mind [and] likable joyful personality," chances are, he’s single by choice.

Dan also seems like he’s something of a gym rat, which he likely has his years in the military to thank for that. Because of his athletic abilities, social skills, and the determination to win, he could go exceptionally far this season. He said in his bio that he can be a leader when needed but also fall back when it's necessary.

I’m sure there are plenty of Survivor super fans on the cast this season, but Dan seems pretty serious about doing everything he can to win. He watched the past 15 seasons over again before going on the show and prepared himself mentally and physically so he could be in top shape in every way. He’s definitely going to be one of the more intense players toward the later part of the season, but right now his strategy is to try and be likable.

Dan’s athletic and social games aren't the only things that will work well for him this season. With his military days behind him, Dan is now a law student, so he also has the ability to argue himself out of some tough situations with other players. It definitely seems like so many of his life experiences have prepared him for his chance on Survivor.

"I think I’m gonna be the sole Survivor because I’m not afraid to make that move," he said in the Entertainment Tonight Canada interview. "The difference between being the second and first is monstrous, right? So I don't understand people who go out there and think, with 11 people left, 'no if I just lay low, I can get to 10, to nine.'"

Ahead of the season, he seemed determined to go far and given his background in general survival, the Wardog could come out on top.