Devens

The Comeback Showman

Communications director & former news anchor

Winner · America's Favorite — BB28 Finale, Episode 41Read the tribute

SEASON RECAP

Won Big Brother 28, 6–1, and America's Favorite. He won the last two parts of the Final HOH and then cut Drew, the ally who had saved him at Final 4. He's the first Survivor player to win BB and finished as the season's top fantasy scorer.

SEASON JOURNEY

total pts

Ep 1Premiere Night: The Time Trip Begins

Chuk Conquers the Fiji River

A Survivor-style plank crossing (with a Jeff Probst cameo) was no match for Chuk, who grabbed safety and recruited two-time Survivor player Rick Devens.

Angela Pitches the Crossovers

'Stand united or fall divided' — Angela sells Dee on a returnee bloc with Devens, Drew & Barrett (+2 each).

Dee Infiltrates the Red Corner

Kamu, Haley & Chuk start the newbie alliance — named for Kamu's MMA corner — and HOH Dee slips right in, five strong (+2 each).

Dee Reads Devens the Riot Act

After Devens leaks the Red Corner to Angela, HOH Dee lays down the law — if the alliance blows up, it falls on him. The season's first trust crack.

Ep 4Mallory Saves Herself

Jason Comes for Big Daddy

"The sooner we get them out, the sooner the game becomes ours." Jason's target is Rick Devens: "America's dad," the man he calls Big Daddy. "I want to take that shot."

Drew Plays Both Sides

The newest Court Jester walked straight to The Crossovers and handed over Jason's entire plan. Dee, Devens, Angela and Barrett now know the con before the con started.

Devens Didn't Even Want It

Rick Devens won his first Head of Household in the time-travel “June 30, 1992” Nashville disc-slide comp, edging Haley 35–27 in the final — after telling the house he wasn't sure he wanted the power at all.

The Toolshed Gets Built at 3 A.M.

Devens gathered both of his alliances — the Crossovers and the Red Corner — in the HOH room in the dead of night and merged them into a single eight-person powerhouse. Drew gave it a name: The Toolshed.

The Cover Story on the Block

Devens nominated Melody, Lyric and Jason, telling them they “didn't talk enough game,” while the real plan hummed underneath: if the veto gets used, Rome goes up as the backdoor target.

Devens Runs the Table: HOH and Veto

Time-tripping to a 1967 “Festival of Love,” Devens raced together the 12-piece “Flower Power” poster and buzzed in seconds ahead of Jason — stacking the Power of Veto on top of his HOH. He called the solve his “A Beautiful Mind” moment. One man, the whole week in his hand.

“I'm Sorry and You're Welcome”: The Backdoor Lands

Devens used the veto to pull Lyric off the block, then slid Rome — never nominated, always the target — into the seat beside Jason and Melody. He pulled Rome aside first: “I'm sorry and you're welcome.” The plan, executed clean.

Ep 8Kissed and Dismissed

The Diamond in the Time Capsule

America voted Devens into the BB Time Capsule, and he came out holding the Diamond Power of Veto: use it like a normal veto on any nominee — himself included — and name the replacement, no HOH input, good for six weeks. He told only Dee, and they agreed to bury it.

Ep 11A Pickled Tea Party

The Diamond Stays Hidden

Rick Devens' secret six-week Diamond Power of Veto never left his pocket — unused, known only to Dee, and quietly the most powerful card in the house heading into Thursday.

Seven in the Backyard

The Crossovers and For the American People find themselves alone in the yard on a Sunday night and walk out as The Mosh Pit — a seven-person majority against the five left outside it.

"You Can't Play These Games Scared"

Three weeks of sitting on the Diamond Power of Veto, a weekend of wavering from a hammock, and then Devens talks himself into the biggest move of the season.

The Diamond Pulls Dee Down

Devens spends the power on the one person he promised it to. Dee walks off the block untouched — the bribe she offered Yash suddenly irrelevant.

Kamu Goes Up, and the HOH Can't Stop It

The Diamond names its own replacement with zero HOH input. Yash's closest ally lands in the third chair, and the Head of Household watches his own week get taken away from him.

Ep 22Kamu’s Cut Short

Ep 25One Thousand, Minus One

Barrett Told the Icons No to Their Faces

Dee and Devens had to be the ones to tell Drew and Barrett that the target had moved to Mallory. Barrett didn't take the news, he answered it — flatly, to the icons, that he would not be a vote to send her home. He kept his word about eighteen hours later. It cost him nothing and changed nothing.

Six to Two, and One of Them Was Drew

Angela, Yash, Haley, Devens, LaTrice — and Drew, who had been sitting on the block beside her that same morning. He won his way off, then voted her out. Melody and Barrett were the only two who didn't, exactly as advertised. The resistance was fully formed and still lost by four.

Ep 26The Year 1000

Dee Builds a Candelabra, Buys Devens a Seat

Britney Haynes made them stack candles on a ring without dropping one, and Dee Valladares out-steadied the whole house. She took her own Stone of Safety, handed the spare straight to Rick Devens, and then chose the next two combatants herself.

Devens Asked for the Block. He Got It.

Rick Devens volunteered as the pawn, hoping Drew would spend the slot backdooring Yash. Drew took the pawn and threw away the plan. Devens is the replacement nominee with nothing bought for it — a big play from a man who thinks he needs one.

He Volunteered for That Chair

Devens offered himself to Drew as a pawn, betting the HOH would spend the slot backdooring Yash. Drew took the pawn and refused the plan — leaving Devens genuinely nominated, with nothing promised and nobody obligated.

Four Spheres, Four Minutes

"Your Game in Ruins" buried the nominees in a quarry of coloured spheres, then made them lean over a balcony and drop the right ones down a tube. All three started badly. Devens and Taylor found it. LaLa never did.

The Survivor Buys the Record

Devens stacked his fourth sphere first and took himself off the block. Had he lost it, he'd have gone home with fewer days in the Big Brother house than he banked across two seasons of Survivor. Instead he bought the record and a week of safety in one throw.

Ep 29Big Brother: Unlocked

Zingbot's Encore — Nobody Was Safe

The robot's official roast ran on Wednesday. Unlocked exists for the rest of it: the zings CBS had no room to air, delivered with the usual disregard for anybody's feelings.

The Full Send: Three Icons on the Block

No backdoor, no games — Barrett nominated all three returnees at once. Angela, Dee, and Devens, straight to the block.

Ep 31The Comical Veto That Wasn't

BB Comic Con and the Bootleg Variants

Zip-line past the window, memorise the order of the covers, then rebuild it from a pile stuffed with near-identical fakes. Taylor got her own comic wrong. Barrett got distracted by being the only one drawn as a villain.

Back-to-Back: Devens Rings the Bell Again

A double-sided wheel of tribal hieroglyphics with rods through both faces, and one rule from Julie: every piece has to fit on one rod or both. Dee solved hers flat on the floor and lost the lead doing it. Devens built straight onto the rods, shouting out his kids to keep his hands moving, and rang first — his second Block Buster in two weeks.

"I Reluctantly Vote to Evict My Partner-in-Crime"

Dee and Angela had spent the week working out how to vote Devens out. Devens, already safe off the Block Buster, got there first — and said it straight into the camera on his way past: "I reluctantly vote to evict my partner-in-crime… Angela."

Julie's Parting Gift: A Double Eviction

Before the credits, Julie Chen Moonves set the table for September 17: a double eviction. Seven houseguests become five in a single night — and the five who supposedly run this house just proved they cannot agree on a single vote.

Ep 33Yash Turns on His Own

The Bribe Yash Couldn't Spend

The BB Bribe Yash swore only shielded Dee turns out to cover every icon — so Dee and Devens sit pretty while Yash is forced to nominate his own.

Ep 34Drew Survives the Pressure Cooker

The Bribe Comes Due

Dee's $5,000 from Week 7 finally cashed in: it shielded all three Icons from Yash's HOH, quietly steering the entire block onto the newbies.

Barrett Becomes the Third Juror

With Melody safe, the house voted 3-1 to evict Barrett in the opening half of the double. A quick 'I love you all,' and he was gone to jury.

Devens Saves Himself. Again.

Nominated in the double-eviction round, Devens did the one thing he always does on the block — win the veto and pull himself to safety.

Yash's Deal Blows Up in His Face

Backdoored by Devens' veto, Yash was voted out 2-1. His secret pact with Drew wasn't worth the handshake it was made on.

'Social Dark Magic'

On his way out, Yash torched Drew as 'weasely' and saluted Dee and Devens' games as 'social dark magic' — the exit interview of a man who saw it all too late.

Your BB28 Final Five

Seven became five in one night: Drew, Melody, Taylor, Devens and Dee are all that's left — and Melody's the one holding HOH heading to Sunday.

Ep 36Big Brother: Unlocked

America's Favorite Vote Opens — and It's Worth +5

Unlocked launched the America's Favorite Houseguest vote. It does not settle until the October 1 finale, and on our board it pays +5 to whoever takes it. Five names are still in the house and every one of them is eligible.

Melody Won Twice in One Hour

Winless for ten weeks, Melody Morris took the final BB Block Buster of the season to save herself, then won the HOH that followed — the only houseguest all season to win both on the same night — and used it to put both surviving Icons on the block.

Devens Saves Himself. Again.

Nominated by Melody, Devens won the veto and took himself down — the third time this season he has come off the block on his own arm, after Block Busters in Weeks 9 and 10. He sat out Week 11 unnominated; this one he had to win. Melody put up Yash instead, and Yash went home 2–1.

Devens Pushes the Button

Offered $10,000 for himself or $1,000 apiece for the house, Devens grabbed the cash solo — and cursed all four of his rivals on the way out.

Four Hours to Reverse the Curse

A four-hour competition ended with Devens stacking the final piece of sacred treasure — HOH key in hand, curse immunity locked in.

Drew Argues His Case

Drew spent the night pleading loyalty — he saved Dee, he voted right — while Devens quietly pegged him as the flirtmance-first flight risk.

The Icons Still Hold

Devens and Dee remain the tightest bond in the house — one holding all the power, the other surviving on everyone else's bigger problems.

Ep 38Drew Saves Himself, and Only Himself

Devens Puts the Showmance Up Together

He didn't want Drew gone and he couldn't afford to say so. Nominating Drew and Melody side by side turned the veto into a weapon that could only fire in one direction.

The Egyptian Tomb Challenge

Five houseguests, one Pharaoh, and a web of booby-trapped ropes where every trip wire cost you. Drew got out with 15 strikes; Dee had 21 and Devens 22.

Taylor Goes Up and Nobody Blinks

Named as the replacement with no time to campaign, Taylor sat down beside Melody and let the arithmetic do the work. She was never the one they wanted.

Devens Breaks His Own Tie

Drew voted Taylor. Dee voted Melody. One apiece — so the man who engineered the entire week had to put his own name on the ending. 2–1.

Devens Named — and Spared

Drew saved himself, Taylor's pen landed on Devens, and the pawn became the beneficiary: no comp win all week, and a Final 3 seat anyway.

Final 3: Drew, Devens, Taylor

Time Trip's last three standing head into the three-part Final HOH — one comp king, one storyteller, one late-blooming winner.

Everybody wants to sit next to Drew

With Part 3 looming, both remaining finalists have made the same plan clear — drag Drew to the end and beat him in front of the jury he burned.

Taylor Rides the Log to Part 3

Drew fell first and called himself "the mayor of choke city." Taylor screamed and cursed through nearly an hour of rain and shocks, and outlasted Devens to win Part 1.

Devens Runs the Table

He lost the first slingshot round to Drew, then won the next three to take Part 2. In Part 3 he didn't miss a single juror question, beat Taylor 5–3, and became the final HOH.

"This Is a Total Betrayal, and I Know That"

Devens promised Drew a Final 2 seat all week, then cut him, after Taylor told him Drew had the four jury votes to beat him. Drew cried and called it the right move, "but this hurts."

Cinderella vs. Blood on His Hands

Taylor said she'd survived the block six times on "faith, perseverance and courage," and asked Drew for his vote. Devens said he'd taken big swings and that his hands were "covered in blood."

6–1, and Only LaTrice Dissents

LaTrice voted for Taylor. Angela, Barrett, Yash, Melody, Dee and Drew all voted for Devens, including the man he had just cut.

$810K, AFP, and Survivor History

Devens also won America's Favorite Houseguest. He is the first Survivor player to win Big Brother, and only the second houseguest to win the game and AFP in the same season, after Taylor Hale.

Wins Part 2 of the Final HOH (slingshot)

Beat Drew four rounds straight.

Wins Part 3: the Final HOH

Jury-question quiz vs Taylor.

Jury vote from Angela

Jury vote from Barrett

Jury vote from Yash

Jury vote from Melody

Jury vote from Dee

Jury vote from Drew

Wins Big Brother 28 (6-1)

The first Survivor player to win Big Brother.

+15

Wins America's Favorite Houseguest

ALLIANCES

The Crossovers

The Red Corner

The Toolshed The Wolf Pack The Mosh Pit

FUN FACTS

One of the "Reality Icons" — three reality-TV vets (Devens, Dee, Angela) folded into a newbie house.
Alliance
EP 1
Leaked the Red Corner straight to Angela — leaving Dee furious and warning that if it blows up, it falls on him.
Backstory
EP 3
Coached his Red Corner allies to "not play so hard" and chill out — running circles around the newbies while his real loyalty sat with the returnee-heavy Crossovers.
EP 3
Jason calls Rick Devens "Big Daddy" — and named him his target: "The sooner we get them out, the sooner the game becomes ours."
Nickname
EP 4
Used his very first HOH to merge the Crossovers and the Red Corner into an eight-person super-alliance the house is calling The Toolshed.
Alliance
EP 6
Won the "Flower Power" veto by building a 1967 festival poster, locking in seconds before Jason — then compared his puzzle solve to *A Beautiful Mind.*
Moment
EP 7
America voted him into the BB Time Capsule and he pulled out the Diamond Power of Veto — save any nominee and name the replacement, no HOH input, good for six weeks — then told only Dee.
Moment
EP 10
Led the Week 3 fan-favorability poll at 31% — nearly double second-place Dee (17%) — while quietly sitting on a secret six-week Diamond Power of Veto that only Dee knew he had.
Moment
EP 11
Talked himself into the biggest move of the season from a hammock, telling the cameras “you can't play these games scared” before finally spending the Diamond Power of Veto he'd sat on for three weeks.
Moment
EP 21
Made the BB28 jury without competing in a single round of the medieval twist. Dee handed him a Stone of Safety in the opening five minutes and he never had to move.
Moment
EP 26
Volunteered to be Drew's replacement nominee — openly asking to go on the block — in the hope it would set up a backdoor on Yash. Drew accepted the pawn and refused the plan.
Moment
EP 27
Had he been evicted tonight, he'd have finished with fewer days in the Big Brother house than he spent across both his seasons of *Survivor* combined. He won the Block Buster and bought the record instead.
Backstory
EP 28
Warned Barrett to his face about burning bridges with the icons, not knowing Barrett was already building the blindside on him.
Moment
EP 30
Memorised the BB Comics board by chanting the first letter of every cover, and lost the veto by twenty-six seconds anyway.
Quirk
EP 31
Won his SECOND BB Block Buster of the season on "Reinvent the Wheel," powering through the double-sided puzzle by shouting out his kids.
Moment
EP 32
Cast one of the three votes to evict his own Icons ally Angela — saving his own game the same night he saved his own skin.
Moment
EP 32
A two-time Block Buster winner and the scariest comp threat left, Devens was legally un-nominable in Yash's HOH week — the BB Bribe Yash took from Dee made the biggest target untouchable.
Moment
EP 33
Won "Great Ball of China" and used the veto on himself — the third time this season he has taken himself off the block, after back-to-back Block Buster escapes.
Moment
EP 35
Pressed the Pharaoh's button for a $10,000 solo cash grab, cursed the entire house on his way out, then won the four-hour 'Reverse the Curse' HOH anyway — money and immunity in one night.
Moment
EP 37
Was one piece from winning the tiny HOH at the fifty-minute mark, watched it collapse, and rebuilt it for three more hours before it finally stood.
Moment
EP 37
Took the $10,000 Pharaoh's Curse cash and then had to break the tie the curse created — the extra eviction he triggered was one he finished by hand.
Moment
EP 38
Made the Final 3 without a single Final 4 comp win — spared by Drew's loyalty vote as the replacement nominee.
Moment
EP 39
Told Drew he was taking him to the end all finale week, then cut him: "This is a total betrayal, and I know that."
Moment
EP 41
Only the second houseguest to win the game and America's Favorite in the same season, after Taylor Hale in BB24.
Moment
EP 41
Left with $810,000: $750K for the win, $50K for AFP, and $10K from the Pharaoh's Curse.
Moment
EP 41
Didn't miss a single juror question in Part 3 of the Final HOH. He won 5–3, and the last question never had to be asked.
Moment
EP 41

RICK ON SURVIVOR

Devens played Survivor twice before this house. His Survivor 50 profile, idol history and fantasy scores are on our sister site.

Rick Devens’s Survivor profile

IN THE NEWS

Latest articles & podcasts featuring Rick

Big Brother 28 Producers React to Unexpected Backlash Against Survivor Stars Devens and Dee

NEWS

5 days ago

Big Brother 28 Producers React to Unexpected Backlash Against Survivor Stars Devens and Dee

Big Brother US

Big Brother 28 Producers Break Silence on Claims Rick Devens and Other Icons Had Unfair Advantages

NEWS

8 days ago

Big Brother 28 Producers Break Silence on Claims Rick Devens and Other Icons Had Unfair Advantages

Big Brother US

Big Brother 28: Rick Devens Opens Up About the Turning Point That Led to His $810,000 Victory

NEWS

13 days ago

Big Brother 28: Rick Devens Opens Up About the Turning Point That Led to His $810,000 Victory

Big Brother US

BIO

The BB28 champion. Devens beat Taylor 6–1 and was also voted America's Favorite Houseguest — the first Survivor contestant ever to win Big Brother, and only the second houseguest (after Taylor Hale) to win the game and AFP in the same season. With the $10,000 he grabbed by pressing the Pharaoh's Curse button, he left with $810,000. Before the house he played Survivor twice: on Survivor 38 (Edge of Extinction) he was voted out on Day 11, fought his way back from the Edge and finished 4th, and he returned for Survivor 50, finishing 7th. Off the island he's a former morning news anchor turned communications director.

🎯 PRE-SEASON FANTASY TAKE

A points printer if he survives the early "get the vet out" wave. His Survivor comp-and-idol pedigree plus a magnetic social game means he racks up HOH and veto equity — but a known crossover threat wears a bullseye from night one. High ceiling, high variance.

PRE-SEASON STRATEGY READ

Weaponize charm and chaos, chase every comp and advantage, and out-talk the room before it can target him.

Rick Devens

The Comeback Showman

"The BB28 champion. Devens beat Taylor 6–1 and was also voted America's Favorite Houseguest — the first Survivor contestant ever to win Big Brother, and only the second houseguest (after Taylor Hale) to win the game and AFP in the same season. With the $10,000 he grabbed by pressing the Pharaoh's Curse button, he left with $810,000. Before the house he played Survivor twice: on Survivor 38 (Edge of Extinction) he was voted out on Day 11, fought his way back from the Edge and finished 4th, and he returned for Survivor 50, finishing 7th. Off the island he's a former morning news anchor turned communications director."

PLAYER INFO

Age: 42

Macon, GA

Communications director & former news anchor

CONNECT

Wiki

Winner · America's Favorite — BB28 Finale, Episode 41Read the tribute

SEASON RECAP

SEASON JOURNEY

total pts

Ep 1Premiere Night: The Time Trip Begins

Chuk Conquers the Fiji River

A Survivor-style plank crossing (with a Jeff Probst cameo) was no match for Chuk, who grabbed safety and recruited two-time Survivor player Rick Devens.

Angela Pitches the Crossovers

'Stand united or fall divided' — Angela sells Dee on a returnee bloc with Devens, Drew & Barrett (+2 each).

Dee Infiltrates the Red Corner

Kamu, Haley & Chuk start the newbie alliance — named for Kamu's MMA corner — and HOH Dee slips right in, five strong (+2 each).

Dee Reads Devens the Riot Act

After Devens leaks the Red Corner to Angela, HOH Dee lays down the law — if the alliance blows up, it falls on him. The season's first trust crack.

Ep 4Mallory Saves Herself

Jason Comes for Big Daddy

"The sooner we get them out, the sooner the game becomes ours." Jason's target is Rick Devens: "America's dad," the man he calls Big Daddy. "I want to take that shot."

Drew Plays Both Sides

The newest Court Jester walked straight to The Crossovers and handed over Jason's entire plan. Dee, Devens, Angela and Barrett now know the con before the con started.

Devens Didn't Even Want It

The Toolshed Gets Built at 3 A.M.

The Cover Story on the Block

Devens nominated Melody, Lyric and Jason, telling them they “didn't talk enough game,” while the real plan hummed underneath: if the veto gets used, Rome goes up as the backdoor target.

Devens Runs the Table: HOH and Veto

“I'm Sorry and You're Welcome”: The Backdoor Lands

Ep 8Kissed and Dismissed

The Diamond in the Time Capsule

Ep 11A Pickled Tea Party

The Diamond Stays Hidden

Rick Devens' secret six-week Diamond Power of Veto never left his pocket — unused, known only to Dee, and quietly the most powerful card in the house heading into Thursday.

Seven in the Backyard

The Crossovers and For the American People find themselves alone in the yard on a Sunday night and walk out as The Mosh Pit — a seven-person majority against the five left outside it.

"You Can't Play These Games Scared"

Three weeks of sitting on the Diamond Power of Veto, a weekend of wavering from a hammock, and then Devens talks himself into the biggest move of the season.

The Diamond Pulls Dee Down

Devens spends the power on the one person he promised it to. Dee walks off the block untouched — the bribe she offered Yash suddenly irrelevant.

Kamu Goes Up, and the HOH Can't Stop It

The Diamond names its own replacement with zero HOH input. Yash's closest ally lands in the third chair, and the Head of Household watches his own week get taken away from him.

Ep 22Kamu’s Cut Short

Ep 25One Thousand, Minus One

Barrett Told the Icons No to Their Faces

Six to Two, and One of Them Was Drew

Ep 26The Year 1000

Dee Builds a Candelabra, Buys Devens a Seat

Devens Asked for the Block. He Got It.

He Volunteered for That Chair

Four Spheres, Four Minutes

The Survivor Buys the Record

Ep 29Big Brother: Unlocked

Zingbot's Encore — Nobody Was Safe

The robot's official roast ran on Wednesday. Unlocked exists for the rest of it: the zings CBS had no room to air, delivered with the usual disregard for anybody's feelings.

The Full Send: Three Icons on the Block

No backdoor, no games — Barrett nominated all three returnees at once. Angela, Dee, and Devens, straight to the block.

Ep 31The Comical Veto That Wasn't

BB Comic Con and the Bootleg Variants

Back-to-Back: Devens Rings the Bell Again

"I Reluctantly Vote to Evict My Partner-in-Crime"

Julie's Parting Gift: A Double Eviction

Ep 33Yash Turns on His Own

The Bribe Yash Couldn't Spend

The BB Bribe Yash swore only shielded Dee turns out to cover every icon — so Dee and Devens sit pretty while Yash is forced to nominate his own.

Ep 34Drew Survives the Pressure Cooker

The Bribe Comes Due

Dee's $5,000 from Week 7 finally cashed in: it shielded all three Icons from Yash's HOH, quietly steering the entire block onto the newbies.

Barrett Becomes the Third Juror

With Melody safe, the house voted 3-1 to evict Barrett in the opening half of the double. A quick 'I love you all,' and he was gone to jury.

Devens Saves Himself. Again.

Nominated in the double-eviction round, Devens did the one thing he always does on the block — win the veto and pull himself to safety.

Yash's Deal Blows Up in His Face

Backdoored by Devens' veto, Yash was voted out 2-1. His secret pact with Drew wasn't worth the handshake it was made on.

'Social Dark Magic'

On his way out, Yash torched Drew as 'weasely' and saluted Dee and Devens' games as 'social dark magic' — the exit interview of a man who saw it all too late.

Your BB28 Final Five

Seven became five in one night: Drew, Melody, Taylor, Devens and Dee are all that's left — and Melody's the one holding HOH heading to Sunday.

Ep 36Big Brother: Unlocked

America's Favorite Vote Opens — and It's Worth +5

Melody Won Twice in One Hour

Devens Saves Himself. Again.

Devens Pushes the Button

Offered $10,000 for himself or $1,000 apiece for the house, Devens grabbed the cash solo — and cursed all four of his rivals on the way out.

Four Hours to Reverse the Curse

A four-hour competition ended with Devens stacking the final piece of sacred treasure — HOH key in hand, curse immunity locked in.

Drew Argues His Case

Drew spent the night pleading loyalty — he saved Dee, he voted right — while Devens quietly pegged him as the flirtmance-first flight risk.

The Icons Still Hold

Devens and Dee remain the tightest bond in the house — one holding all the power, the other surviving on everyone else's bigger problems.

Ep 38Drew Saves Himself, and Only Himself

Devens Puts the Showmance Up Together

He didn't want Drew gone and he couldn't afford to say so. Nominating Drew and Melody side by side turned the veto into a weapon that could only fire in one direction.

The Egyptian Tomb Challenge

Five houseguests, one Pharaoh, and a web of booby-trapped ropes where every trip wire cost you. Drew got out with 15 strikes; Dee had 21 and Devens 22.

Taylor Goes Up and Nobody Blinks

Named as the replacement with no time to campaign, Taylor sat down beside Melody and let the arithmetic do the work. She was never the one they wanted.

Devens Breaks His Own Tie

Drew voted Taylor. Dee voted Melody. One apiece — so the man who engineered the entire week had to put his own name on the ending. 2–1.

Devens Named — and Spared

Drew saved himself, Taylor's pen landed on Devens, and the pawn became the beneficiary: no comp win all week, and a Final 3 seat anyway.

Final 3: Drew, Devens, Taylor

Time Trip's last three standing head into the three-part Final HOH — one comp king, one storyteller, one late-blooming winner.

Everybody wants to sit next to Drew

With Part 3 looming, both remaining finalists have made the same plan clear — drag Drew to the end and beat him in front of the jury he burned.

Taylor Rides the Log to Part 3

Drew fell first and called himself "the mayor of choke city." Taylor screamed and cursed through nearly an hour of rain and shocks, and outlasted Devens to win Part 1.

Devens Runs the Table

He lost the first slingshot round to Drew, then won the next three to take Part 2. In Part 3 he didn't miss a single juror question, beat Taylor 5–3, and became the final HOH.

"This Is a Total Betrayal, and I Know That"

Devens promised Drew a Final 2 seat all week, then cut him, after Taylor told him Drew had the four jury votes to beat him. Drew cried and called it the right move, "but this hurts."

Cinderella vs. Blood on His Hands

Taylor said she'd survived the block six times on "faith, perseverance and courage," and asked Drew for his vote. Devens said he'd taken big swings and that his hands were "covered in blood."

6–1, and Only LaTrice Dissents

LaTrice voted for Taylor. Angela, Barrett, Yash, Melody, Dee and Drew all voted for Devens, including the man he had just cut.

$810K, AFP, and Survivor History

Devens also won America's Favorite Houseguest. He is the first Survivor player to win Big Brother, and only the second houseguest to win the game and AFP in the same season, after Taylor Hale.

Wins Part 2 of the Final HOH (slingshot)

Beat Drew four rounds straight.

Wins Part 3: the Final HOH

Jury-question quiz vs Taylor.

Jury vote from Angela

Jury vote from Barrett

Jury vote from Yash

Jury vote from Melody

Jury vote from Dee

Jury vote from Drew

Wins Big Brother 28 (6-1)

The first Survivor player to win Big Brother.

+15

Wins America's Favorite Houseguest

ALLIANCES

The Crossovers

The Red Corner

The Toolshed The Wolf Pack The Mosh Pit

FUN FACTS

One of the "Reality Icons" — three reality-TV vets (Devens, Dee, Angela) folded into a newbie house.
Alliance
EP 1
Leaked the Red Corner straight to Angela — leaving Dee furious and warning that if it blows up, it falls on him.
Backstory
EP 3
Coached his Red Corner allies to "not play so hard" and chill out — running circles around the newbies while his real loyalty sat with the returnee-heavy Crossovers.
EP 3
Jason calls Rick Devens "Big Daddy" — and named him his target: "The sooner we get them out, the sooner the game becomes ours."
Nickname
EP 4
Used his very first HOH to merge the Crossovers and the Red Corner into an eight-person super-alliance the house is calling The Toolshed.
Alliance
EP 6
Won the "Flower Power" veto by building a 1967 festival poster, locking in seconds before Jason — then compared his puzzle solve to *A Beautiful Mind.*
Moment
EP 7
America voted him into the BB Time Capsule and he pulled out the Diamond Power of Veto — save any nominee and name the replacement, no HOH input, good for six weeks — then told only Dee.
Moment
EP 10
Led the Week 3 fan-favorability poll at 31% — nearly double second-place Dee (17%) — while quietly sitting on a secret six-week Diamond Power of Veto that only Dee knew he had.
Moment
EP 11
Talked himself into the biggest move of the season from a hammock, telling the cameras “you can't play these games scared” before finally spending the Diamond Power of Veto he'd sat on for three weeks.
Moment
EP 21
Made the BB28 jury without competing in a single round of the medieval twist. Dee handed him a Stone of Safety in the opening five minutes and he never had to move.
Moment
EP 26
Volunteered to be Drew's replacement nominee — openly asking to go on the block — in the hope it would set up a backdoor on Yash. Drew accepted the pawn and refused the plan.
Moment
EP 27
Had he been evicted tonight, he'd have finished with fewer days in the Big Brother house than he spent across both his seasons of *Survivor* combined. He won the Block Buster and bought the record instead.
Backstory
EP 28
Warned Barrett to his face about burning bridges with the icons, not knowing Barrett was already building the blindside on him.
Moment
EP 30
Memorised the BB Comics board by chanting the first letter of every cover, and lost the veto by twenty-six seconds anyway.
Quirk
EP 31
Won his SECOND BB Block Buster of the season on "Reinvent the Wheel," powering through the double-sided puzzle by shouting out his kids.
Moment
EP 32
Cast one of the three votes to evict his own Icons ally Angela — saving his own game the same night he saved his own skin.
Moment
EP 32
A two-time Block Buster winner and the scariest comp threat left, Devens was legally un-nominable in Yash's HOH week — the BB Bribe Yash took from Dee made the biggest target untouchable.
Moment
EP 33
Won "Great Ball of China" and used the veto on himself — the third time this season he has taken himself off the block, after back-to-back Block Buster escapes.
Moment
EP 35
Pressed the Pharaoh's button for a $10,000 solo cash grab, cursed the entire house on his way out, then won the four-hour 'Reverse the Curse' HOH anyway — money and immunity in one night.
Moment
EP 37
Was one piece from winning the tiny HOH at the fifty-minute mark, watched it collapse, and rebuilt it for three more hours before it finally stood.
Moment
EP 37
Took the $10,000 Pharaoh's Curse cash and then had to break the tie the curse created — the extra eviction he triggered was one he finished by hand.
Moment
EP 38
Made the Final 3 without a single Final 4 comp win — spared by Drew's loyalty vote as the replacement nominee.
Moment
EP 39
Told Drew he was taking him to the end all finale week, then cut him: "This is a total betrayal, and I know that."
Moment
EP 41
Only the second houseguest to win the game and America's Favorite in the same season, after Taylor Hale in BB24.
Moment
EP 41
Left with $810,000: $750K for the win, $50K for AFP, and $10K from the Pharaoh's Curse.
Moment
EP 41
Didn't miss a single juror question in Part 3 of the Final HOH. He won 5–3, and the last question never had to be asked.
Moment
EP 41