From firefighters to software engineers, Survivor 48 has players that will make this season top tier. Shortly after Survivor 46’s conclusion in 2024, all these players came to the Mamanuca Islands of Fiji. The TV show’s goal each season is to cast players from “all different walks of life”. Here are my top three best and worst player predictions from Survivor 48. 

Third-Best Player – Shauhin Davari

Shauhin Davari is a Debate Professor from California and is known as “the man with the beard.” To me, these nicknames are not a characteristic of Shauhin’s personality but an essential part of his gameplay. His social game got other players to tell him about secret powers and be included in several alliances. He is on the Lagi Tribe, which is currently the strongest tribe, winning the most competitions. My only concern with Davari is that his path might be too easy getting to the end, making the jury flip and not vote for him to win the game. Shauhin Davari is a smart game player with charming characteristics and decent competition ability that will get him far in this game. 

Second-Best Player – Kamilla Karthigesu

This 31-year-old Canadian has been consistently underestimated throughout her life, and she wants to play Survivor with a chance to be seen as more than just smart. Although she has already solved multiple puzzles (one of them to give her friend an immunity idol), she has been included in her tribe’s majority alliance while still flying under the radar. Karthigesu is on the Civa Tribe, which has done above average in the most recent competitions. But, if her tribe were to lose, Kamilla made sure she would not be the one to pack her bags. Kamilla Karthigesu’s intelligence and social skills will become essential for her tribe’s success, giving her an easy path to the merge. 

Best Player – Thomas Krottinger

Thomas Krottinger is a Music Executive. He has already demonstrated strong leadership and strategy. When first coming into the game, Krottinger immediately finds a strong ride-or-die; he knows that her abilities and personality connect with his own, creating an alliance that has the potential to last the whole game. Thomas has already come up with a brilliant (but unsuccessful) plan to make one of his tribe mates ineligible to vote for the pre-merge tribal consuls. This proves that he does have the knowledge needed to make it far in the game while being able to make the memorable power moves necessary to win. Furthermore, Thomas Krottinger’s tribe, the Lagi Tribe, has been dominating the competitions, making him my winner prediction. 

Third-Worst Player – Justin Pioppi

Casting this year has allowed clueless players onto the season. Justin Pioppi was one of those players. He has been naive in several situations while proving that he knew little about the show. His tribe, the Vula Tribe, has not been doing well in daily challenges for immunity and reward, and he is closely connected to his tribe’s main opposition. Pioppi recently voted out one of his closest and strongest alliance members for no real reason and will continue to fly under other people’s wings. Justin Pioppi was recently voted out of the game because of his weak gameplay. 

Second- Worst Player – Star Toomey

Star Toomey has a fun and athletic personality, which got her through the first night with her successful tribe, the Lagi Tribe. It went well until she broke one of the key pre-merge Survivor “do nots.” Her tribe started to notice that she was always away from camp, and the only thing they could do was assume she was looking for a safety idol. They were not wrong as she was looking for them, but this made her the tribe’s public enemy as they knew she had an advantage of some sort. Toomey managed to find a beware advantage, which took away her vote until she solved a puzzle. With no vote, Star tells most of her tribe about the advantage of only leaving one person out. This person was well-connected and quickly found out, making Toomey appear threatening. Not to mention, while Star was making this mess, she gave her advantage to another player who was about to throw it away, meaning she lost her vote until the merge. Star Toomey made wrong decisions that acted as a domino effect, making her the bottom of her tribe. 

Worst Player – Saiounia “Sai” Hughley

Every Survivor fan knows the danger of “playing too hard, too fast,” and Hughley is a perfect example of this. From her perspective, she rules the tribe and makes every decision. Little does she know, many players have already caught onto her tricks. This gameplay may work for the short-term as only her alliance members will come out of her tribe, but in the long-term game, Sai’s game is destined to fail. Saiounia has publicly told people that she will get them voted out, she has revealed her alliance with three other tribe members, she told her entire tribe about her immunity idol, and lastly, she used the idol when she did not need to. Her dictatorship has gotten two “sheep” players on her side, but these players are starting to understand that her intentions do not benefit anyone but her. Saiounia Hughley’s strong start gameplay will burn out and make her one of the first to be voted off the island. 

It is up to the other players to decide who wins the famous game of Survivor. The finale will take place on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, when the winner of season 48 will be crowned. Episodes are released every Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT.