Ranking the Celebrity Big Brother houseguests: No. 2

In light of Celebrity Big Brother being left off CBS’ schedule, we thought we would take a trip down memory lane. We are going to be ranking all Celebrity Big Brother houseguests from 23 to 1. Today we will take a look at No. 2: Ross Mathews.

When CBS released their midseason schedule, there was a notable absence from it: Celebrity Big Brother. This has led to speculation that the series has been cancelled. It really is a shame because it provided fans some entertainment in the black hole known as the Big Brother offseason. With this in mind, we decided to rank the houseguests from 23 to 1. Checking in at No. 2 on our list is Ross Mathews from Season 1.

No. 2: Ross Mathews (Celebrity Big Brother 1)

Ross is known for his aggressive gameplay on Celebrity Big Brother 1. He was also known for his in-game rivalry with Omarosa and friendship with Marissa Jaret Winokur.

In the first cycle, Ross joined the women’s alliance as a 7th member to help him stay safe. During this time, he was able to build key relationships that would help him last throughout the game. That cycle, he helped Shannon flip the house and evict Chuck Liddell.

In the second cycle, Ross won HOH and nominated Keshia Knight Pulliam and Omarosa for eviction, with the intention of targeting Omarosa. Later in the cycle, Ross’ target shifted to Shannon Elizabeth. His closest ally, Marissa, won POV that week. However, Keshia wanted out, squashing Ross’ plans. Keshia was evicted 7-0.

Ross was able to stay safe during the 3rd cycle. Here, he helped play a big role in evicting Shannon.

In the fourth cycle, Omarosa won HOH and nominated Ross alongside Brandi Glanville, with the intention of targeting Ross. A twist on the POV that week allowed America to pick the POV of their choice that the celebrities would play for. America chose to put the VIP Veto into play. This veto would allow its holder to use it twice if they wished. The HOH would then have to name 2 replacement nominees.

Ross won the VIP Veto that cycle. However, there was no need to for him to use it twice as Metta World Peace wanted out. Ross used the Veto on himself and Metta was named the replacement nominee. Metta was then evicted in a 5-0 vote.

In the fifth cycle, Ross was able to stay safe again. HOH Mark McGrath targeted Ross’ ally Brandi because of Brandi’s rivalry with James. Brandi was nominated alongside Ariadna Gutierrez for eviction that cycle. When Ariadna won the POV to save herself that week, Mark named Marissa the replacement nominee. Brandi was evicted in a 3-1 vote.

In the sixth cycle, Omarosa won HOH and again targeted Ross. Omarosa nominated Ross alongside Marissa for eviction. Ross won the POV to save himself that week. Needing a replacement nominee, Omarosa targeted James Maslow as the next strongest player. At the live eviction, James was evicted 2-1.

At the final 5, Ross won HOH and again targeted Omarosa. He nominated Omarosa alongside Ariadna for eviction. Ross also won the POV that week and chose not to use it. He was able to finally evict his rival, Omarosa in a 2-0 vote.

At the final 4, Ross’ closest ally, Marissa won HOH. By default, Ross was nominated alongside Mark and Ariadna for eviction. Marissa chose to take Ross to the final 2, evicting Mark and Ariadna in the process.

On finale night, Ross became the runner-up of Celebrity Big Brother 1, losing in a 6-3 vote to Marissa. Ross garnered votes from Metta World Peace, Brandi Glanville, and Mark McGrath. However, all was not lost on finale night for Ross. Ross was named America’s Favorite Player (over Shannon Elizabeth and James Maslow) and awarded $25,000.

Ross checks in at No. 2 because of his strong gameplay. The only real area in which he faltered was jury management. He couldn’t own up to his lies on finale night and that’s ultimately what cost him the game.

Stay tuned to see who checks in at No. 1!