Sentinels hire former FaZe Clan Valorant roster as head coach
Shane “Rawkus” Flaherty has ditched FaZe Clan’s Valorant roster to join Sentinels as their head coach. The move was made ahead of the VCT Champions run.
The Sentinels had been competing in Valorant without an official head coach prior to the acquisition. Their roster was directed mainly by in-game leader Shahzeb “ShahZaM” Khan.
Rawkus is a former Overwatch League pro, playing for the Houston Outlaws. He was hired by the FaZe Clan along with Andrej “baybay” Francisty and had been playing the Sova main role prior to his departure.
Sentinels made the announcement on Twitter on Monday, saying that they are “adding brainpower to our firepower”.
“We’re ready for Berlin,” they continued. “Let’s get to work @Rawkus.”
Shocked by the unexpected news, fans replied to the tweet, expressing their disbelief.
“UNEXPECTED,” said one.
“No way??” replied another.
Some others, however, were happy with the move and congratulated Sentinels and Rawkus.
“Yoooooo,” said @tawheed188.
“HUGE! CONGRATS,” said @NebtuneFGC
Sentinels Vs. FaZe Clan
The Sentinels and The FaZe Clan faced each other three times during the Valorant Champions Tour. The Sentinels won all three series without dropping a single map, including in the grand finals of NA Masters One.
On the other hand, FaZe struggled throughout all the series save for the first VCT stage Sentinels dominated the series and became a prominent team in North America as well as in the world. They qualified for Champions by the end of their Masters Reykjavík run.
Are members abandoning FaZe Clan?
The news of Rawkus’ departure from FaZe came only a week after Hunter “BabyJ” Schline announced on November 2, after the NA VCT Last Chance Qualifier, that he was also leaving the organization.
Corey “Corey” Nigra soon followed suit. It was been rumoured that Corey is among the ongoing trialists along with Luminosity TiGG at TSM while BabyJ became a free agent and made a partnership deal with Evolved Talent.
The FaZe roster now comprises only babybay, Zachary “ZachaREEE” Lombardo, and former CS:GO pro-turned-coach Joshua “JDM” Marzano.
FaZe are not the only one being abandoned
1. Team Envy
Anthony “mummAy” DiPaolo ditched Team Envy on November 5 to join Andbox only after less than two months of a trial period. MummAy is widely regarded as one of the best controller players in the NA region.
“Bringing down the house, New York style,” Andbox tweeted. “Please give a warm welcome to our latest sharpshooter @mummAy.”
2. Gen.G Esports
Gen.G Esports released Nolan “Temperature” Pepper from his duties on November 4 as his short period loan spell ended. The player became a free agent and is currently looking forward to joining a new squad.
“Thank you @TemperatureCSGO for stepping up and competing in #VCT LCQ with us,” Gen.G said in a tweet written on November 5. “Wishing you all the best moving forward!”
3. Luminosity Gaming
Diondre “YaBoiDre” Bond was released of his duties by Luminosity gaming on November 8. YaBoiDre also became a free agent and is currently looking forward to joining a new squad.
“As of today I’m allowed to look into offers as a restricted free agent,” YaBoiDre released a statement on social media. “So thankful for everything LG has done for me and allowing me to represent them! I love all my teammates and wish them the best ❤️ Looking to play Flex/ Main smokes. Dm for info”
