With Overwatch Contenders Season 1 in full swing, upsets are prone to happen. EnVision Esports has done the unthinkable by defeating some of the strongest talent in North America. With Rogue and Immortals checked off their list, Jason "Jaru" White sat down with Esports Heaven to talk about Contenders and the recent success he and his team has been receiving.

Afternoon Jaru, how are you doing today after quite the monumental weekend? First Rogue and now Immortals? I think congratulations are in order, well played!

“I'm doing great, thanks for asking. Still a little overwhelmed but it has been a crazy two weeks. Beating Rogue and Immortals was not only great in itself because they are both great teams, but it was proving everyone wrong that made it feel monumental. Couldn't have done it without my team.”

Starting us off, take me back for a moment. Talk to me about the last seconds on Watch Point: Gibraltar. Beating Rogue on their best map—That had to have been an adrenaline rush. What was going through your mind? What was the overall atmosphere in the team?

“My mentality during the last fight was to follow every target that was called. I wanted nothing else but to beat who is considered one of the best teams in the world. Being on a team like Envision just makes you so hyped to play in these high stakes matches. Everyone is yelling targets or screaming ‘Congo! Congo!’, which is our callout for when a Winston jumps our backline. The team atmosphere can be the deciding factor between beating a team like Rogue or living up to the expectation to lose like the majority of people thought.”

Now, you’ve all shown that you are serious contenders (pun intended) when it comes to this league having a very strong performance against Immortals, a team who was touted to be at least top 3 in North America according to many pundits. How does it feel shaking up the hierarchy a bit? What was the overall feeling once you beat Immortals?

“It feels incredible to show everyone what we can do. We have a lot of individual talent masked from poor teamplay in the past. I haven't been on Envision long enough to comment on what the players were like months ago but I know for sure I can say my teammates are gods. The feeling of yelling targets in the overtime push on Watch Point: Gibraltar was sensational. You can just feel the grasp of victory by seeing my teammates come together to finish off the map. For us to deliver two upsets by beating Immortals and Rogue finally puts us on the map in the eyes of the community.”

Now to give credit where credit is due, what was the atmosphere of the comms when Agilities hit you guys with the 6-man Dragon Blade? Did that take the wind out of the team’s sails at all?

“Honestly it was pretty nuts. Everyone literally went ‘WTF’ or ‘WHAT JUST HAPPENED’, but it didn't faze us too much. Soon after, we win a team fight and start snowballing past the second checkpoint. It was a great play, I'll give Agilities that, but the play didn't get much value considering we didn't use any ults and proceeded to push afterwards.”

The play in question by Immortals’ Brady "Agilities" Girardi

That last play on Gibraltar, you went crazy off screen. What was going through your head in that moment?

“In that moment I saw Agilities picking off my teammates. All I thought was ‘I need to pop off.’ While there was a fight on the payload I spotted Kariv in the server room by himself and I yell ‘Zen is in server I'm killing him!’. Then, I move back to the payload and start picking up kills, but unfortunately it wasn't caught on stream and I keep forgetting to record. For me, counter blading Agilities and proceeding to kill him was a great feeling and I respect him as a player. In the past and sometimes even now, people have called me the ‘Budget Agilities’ and I finally felt comparable or even superior to him on Sunday.”

Obviously you and your team are playing with your hearts on your sleeves after not qualifying during Season 1. What does this second chance to compete mean to you, personally?

“For me personally, it means everything because I get to prove myself. I feel I'm one of the most underrated players right now, so getting that chance again means a lot. Nobody knew who I was 2 months ago. So now, I just want to be recognized for all the grinding and hard work I have done over these past 3 months.”

If we could, could we talk about the team for a second? What is going on with the situation of the main tank? Is Numlocked staying aboard or are you guys still unsure of the roster?

“Regarding our main tank, ChrisTFer was great against Rogue but he wanted to take up other opportunities and everyone could understand his situation. As for Numlocked, we'll definitely be sticking with him for now, especially after our performance against Immortals. He's gotten a lot of flack from his NRG days and I don't doubt he will prove himself to be a strong main tank.”

Something that at least I personally have been wondering was who is calling for this iteration of the EnVision roster? Who would you say is the vocal leader in the coms?

“Fire is the main caller for the team right now. ChrisTFer was calling when he was playing with us, so Fire just started shotcalling for about a week. The vocal leader would have to be Gravy because when he yells, everyone hears him no matter what. We all have our different roles with comms, so everyone contributes.”

It seems like you all have adjusted very well to this new metagame with a resurgence of Reinhardt, McCree and Doomfist. Do you think this metagame favors you all in any way?  If so, could you describe a bit more how it does help you personally?

“I feel this new composition really excels to our strengths as individual players. Numlocked is a really solid Reinhardt, Gravy is a really great hitscan, and I personally love playing the style of Doomfist. So yes, I do think this metagame favors us with our hero pools. For me personally, I've been grinding Doomfist ever since he released. I didn't bring it out against Rogue because I just wasn't confident in my play at the time. The style fits me very well because I just love being a playmaker.”

What can we expect next week from EnVision? Was this just a flash in the pan or will you all continue to perform at this level? Any words for your opponents next week, the Detroit Renegades?

“We will go our hardest no matter who we are facing. People thought us beating Rogue was a fluke but we proved it wasn't against Immortals. We will come out strong and prove we can be a top level team. As for the Detroit Renegades, from me personally, I can and I will. Now watch me.”

… and last but certainly not least, the final comment of the interview is all yours! Let people know where they can find you and what you’ll be doing next.

“People can watch my stream over at Twitch.tv/JaruOW and follow my twitter @JaruOW. Honestly I'm just always on the grind looking to improve myself in anyway I can. I love the fans and I love playing the game.”

Joseph “Volamel” Franco has followed esports since the MLG’s of 2006. He started out primarily following Starcraft 2, Halo 3, and Super Smash Bros. Melee. He has transitioned from viewer to journalist and writes freelance primarily about Overwatch and League of Legends. If you would like to know more or follow his thoughts on esports you can follow him at @Volamel.

Images courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment and EnVision Esports.