Ryan Ulrich

Ryan Ulrich is a contestant from .
Ryan started off in a strong position, forming the initial Yawa tribe majority with ally Devon Pinto. He discovered the Super Idol on Day 1, which he later gifted to Chrissy Hofbeck, which resulted in the two aligning after the Tribe Switch. After joining the majority Round Table alliance following the merge, Ryan appeared to keep a low profile. However, he was eventually relegated to the minority with Chrissy, but both managed to get back in the majority after Ben Driebergen became the main target. When Chrissy won the Final Immunity Challenge a new twist required her to save one person at Tribal Council. She chose to save Ryan, guaranteeing him a spot at the Final Tribal Council. However, Ryan's game was put under scrutiny for his general lack of work ethic or strategic conversation outside of his core alliance. Ultimately, he could not salvage his reputation and lost to Ben in a 5-2-1 vote with only one vote to win, leaving him with a third place finish.
==Profile==
Retrieved from CBS.com
Age: 23
Hometown: North Arlington, N.J.
Current Residence: North Arlington, N.J.
Occupation: Bellhop
Hobbies: Watching sports, karaoke, and playing harmonica.
Pet peeves: Smoking, political correctness, and people who lack passion.
Three words to describe you: Witty, ambitious, and approachable.
What's your personal claim to fame? I've worked a lot of jobs, but I am most proud of my internships with both houses of Congress, and the British Consulate. I also aspire to attend law school.
Who or what is your inspiration in life? New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning is my inspiration in life. His toughness is admirable, as he has never missed a game in his entire NFL career. He has a humble demeanor, and always takes responsibility if the team loses. Even though he has won two Super Bowls, he is continually critiqued, yet always acts with grace and humility. Eli has honestly provided me with some of the best moments of my life, so take that for what it's worth.
If you could have three things on the island, what would they be and why? First I would bring a sports visor which will block out the sun as well as allow the top of my head to get an Island breeze, a McDonald's Shamrock Shake because they are seasonal so any opportunity I have to get one, I have to take, and a podium so I could give press conferences to pretend people care about what I have to say.
Which Survivor contestant are you most like? Todd Herzog, on , he had tremendous social skills and charisma; he was incredibly well-spoken and he was relatable enough to build bonds that lasted until the end. Similar to Todd, I think some of my abilities are underestimated by others.
What's your reason for being on Survivor? I love the game. I have wanted to play this game since I was six years old. It's much more than a game to me, it's a passion, I obsess over it. Life does not give you many opportunities to test yourself like Survivor is designed to.
Why do you think you'll "survive" Survivor? I feel like I can get along with a variety of different people because I have knowledge of different topics. Without question, I am there to win and I will use relationships to get to the end yet I will do it in a way that ensures I'm liked enough to get votes.http://web.archive.org/web/20230331001724/https://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/cast/215725/
==Survivor==
Ryan started on Yawa. During the marooning he found a secret advantage on the ship. At camp, he read the advantage which turned out to be a super idol, allowing him to use it after the votes are read at the very first Tribal Council, but if his tribe doesn't lose the first Immunity Challenge he would have to give the idol to someone on the losing tribe. On Day 2, he aligned with Devon Pinto and told him about the idol. Yawa won the first Immunity Challenge while Levu lost. Ryan gave the idol to Chrissy Hofbeck though she did not use it. Yawa lost immunity on Day 6. At Tribal Council, Ryan joined the majority in voting out Simone Nguyen for her weakness in challenges. Yawa lost again. He talked to Devon about keeping Patrick Bolton, but Devon wanted Patrick out. At Tribal Council, he contributed to Patrick's elimination.
Ryan along with Ali Elliott were switched to Soko when the Tribe Switch occurred. On Soko, he told Chrissy that he gave her the idol which caused them to form a bond. When Soko lost immunity on Day 14, Ali and Roark Luskin targeted Chrissy, while Chrissy and JP Hilsabeck targeted Roark with Ryan being the swing vote. Ryan sided with Chrissy, blindsiding Roark and shocking Ali. Returning from Tribal Council, Ali confronted Ryan and the two got into an argument. Soko won the next Reward Challenge thanks to JP, but this concerned Ryan because he believe JP could be a physical threat down the road. Soko lost immunity again. At camp, Ryan made amends with Ali and considered targeting JP for being a physical threat. He discussed this with Chrissy. Ultimately, Ryan and Chrissy spared JP and blindsided Ali.
Ryan made it to the merge where he joined The Round Table alliance which controlled the first few merge votes. He managed to find a Hidden Immunity Idol without getting caught, despite the confrontation that ensued between Cole and Chrissy who were both looking for an idol. He told this to Devon and Ben Driebergen. On Night 29, the trio of Ryan, Chrissy, and JP voted for Mike Zahalsky, but his allies Ben, Lauren Rimmer, Ashley Nolan, and Devon sided with the outsiders Mike and Joe Mena and blindsided JP shocking Ryan and Chrissy. Sometime after Tribal Council, Ryan tried to make amends with Devon, but he was unable to do so. The next day Ryan unsuccessfully tried to sway Mike to his side. Chrissy won immunity on Day 30. At camp, Ben tried to convince Ryan to play his idol. At Tribal Council, Ryan and Chrissy voted for Ashley, Ryan played his idol but it was unneeded as it only negated two votes and Joe was voted out.
The next day, Ryan met his dad Steve at the Loved Ones Challenge. Chrissy won the Loved Ones Challenge and chose to share the reward with Mike, Ryan, and Ashley. Ashley won immunity. At camp, Ben talked to Mike about voting for Lauren. During Tribal Council, Ryan whispered to Mike that Lauren had to go, but Mike convinced him to vote for Ben. Chrissy walked over to Ryan to say she was on board with voting out Lauren. She refused when Mike and Ryan asked her to vote out Ben. Ryan joined the majority (including Chrissy) in voting for Ben, but Ben played his idol, and his sole vote blindsided Lauren.
Devon and Chrissy won the next Reward Challenge, and chose to share the reward with Ryan. On the trip the three made a Final Three deal. At Tribal Council, Ben played his idol before the votes were cast forcing the five to turn on each other, which resulted in Ryan joining the majority in unanimously voting out Ashley. On Day 37, Chrissy won immunity and shared the reward with Devon and Mike leaving Ryan with Ben at camp. Chrissy later told Ryan she was using her super idol which was powerless to prevent Ben from looking for an idol. Devon told Ryan he was feeling uneasy about Ben acting defeated and considered throwing a stray vote at Mike, but Ryan tried to convince him not to do it. At Tribal Council, Ryan voted for Ben, but Ben played his idol which negated the 3 votes cast against him, resulting in a 1-1-0 tie between Mike and Devon. In the revote Ryan and Chrissy voted for Mike which resulted in his elimination. Chrissy won the Final Immunity Challenge. She told Ryan and Devon that since she won immunity she had to save one person at Tribal Council and force the other two to compete in the fire making challenge, and she told Ryan she was saving him. At Tribal Council, she saved Ryan, but Devon lost to Ben in the challenge resulting in Devon becoming the final member of the jury.
At the Final Tribal Council, Ryan was accused of his lack of social and strategic conversations, and work around camp. Even Ben and Chrissy accused him of not doing work around camp. He argued that many of the strategic and social moves such as finding the super idol, using the super idol to align with Chrissy, using Devon for his social game and connections, and forming the majority alliance at the start of the merge were his moves. He also argued that he did not have any outdoor experience, but he still received criticism for not putting in any effort. When Chrissy pointed out her relationship with Devon, Ryan argued that he was the reason she had a relationship with Devon. The only person who voted for him was Devon. He finished in third place, losing to runner-up Chrissy, who got two votes, and Ben, who won with five votes.
<tabber>Challenge History=
Episode 	TribeAffiliation 	Challenge 	Challenge Type	Sit-Out?	Result
1 	rowspan=4 	Race to Shore 	Reward 	No 	
1 	Tracks of My Tears 	Immunity 	No 	 	
2 	Crossroads 	Reward/Immunity 	No 	 	
3 	Block in a Hard Place 	Reward/Immunity 	No 	 	
colspan="6"	 	 	 	 	
4 	rowspan=6 	Tangled Up 	Reward 	No 	
4 	The Color and the Shape	Immunity 	No 	 	
5 	Head Long Flight 	Reward 	No 	 	
5 	Rice Race 	Immunity 	Yes 	 	
6 	A-Tension Span 	Reward 	No 	 	
6 	Discy Business 	Immunity 	No 	 	
colspan="6"	 	 	 	 	
7 	rowspan=15 	Will It Go Round	Immunity 	 	
8 	Air Raid 	Reward 	No 	 	
8 	Ten-Foot Pole 	Immunity 	 	 	
9 	Hear About It Ladder 	Reward 	 	 	
9 	Squatty Probst 	Immunity 	 	 	
10 	The Game is Afoot 	Reward 	 	 	
10 	Bermuda Triangles 	Immunity 	No 	 	
10 	Kenny Log-Ins 	Reward 	 	 	
10 	Driving Wheel 	Immunity 	 	 	
11 	Love on the Rocks 	Reward 	 	 	
11 	This Much 	Immunity 	 	 	
12 	The Bottom Line 	Reward 	 	 	
12 	Franklin's Tower 	Immunity 	 	 	
13 	Might as Well Jump 	Reward/Immunity 	 	 	
13 	You Shook Me 	Immunity 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	
|-|Voting History=
Episode	Ryan'sVotes	Voted AgainstRyan
1 	 	
2 	 	
3 	 	
4 	 	
5 	 	
6 	 	
7 	 	
8 	 	
9 	 	
10 	 	
10 	 	
11 	 	
12 	 	
13 	 	
 	colspan="2"	
 	 	
 In , the vote ended with a 4-4 tie between Desi and Joe, forcing a revote. Ryan did not change his vote on the revote. In , Ryan used a Hidden Immunity Idol, negating 2 votes against him. In , Ben used a Hidden Immunity Idol, negating Ryan's vote against him. In , Ben used a Hidden Immunity Idol, negating Ryan's vote against him. Also, the vote ended with a 1-1-0 tie between Devon and Mike, forcing a revote. Ryan changed his vote to Mike on the revote.</tabber>
==Post-Survivor==
==Trivia==
* Ryan is the youngest contestant to compete on .
* Ryan broke his toe on Day 12, and finished the game with the injury.https://www.reddit.com/r/survivor/comments/8xufj4/ryan_ulrich_ama/e267x64/
* Ryan is highest-ranking member of the original Yawa tribe.
* Ryan is the third castaway to receive a jury vote and finish in third place, following Amanda Kimmel in and Missy Payne in .
** Ryan is the first male finalist with this distinction.
* Ryan lost 14 lbs. during his time in Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers.https://www.reddit.com/r/survivor/comments/8xufj4/ryan_ulrich_ama/e25wkyj/
==References==
Category:Contestants
Category:Male Contestants
Category:Youngest Contestants
Category:Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers Contestants
Category:Finalists
Category:Yawa Tribe
Category:Solewa Tribe
Category:3rd Place
Category:Survivor (U.S.)
Category:Survivor (U.S.) Contestants
Category:Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers
Category:1993 births
Category:Living people