Mallory Aurichio has singled out Drew Campbell as the person who betrayed her most after her emotional eviction from “Big Brother 28.”
The 24-year-old rocket scientist spoke exclusively with the outlet on Monday, breaking down the alliances and backstabbing that defined her final days in the house. Aurichio, who was sent packing after Campbell’s duplicity came to light, said she had long suspected he was close with the “Icons” alliance but gave him the benefit of the doubt anyway.
“I always knew he was tight with the ‘Icons’ and I knew he talked too much, but I had been kind of assuming he had my best interests and he didn’t,” she said.
Aurichio accused Campbell, 22, of playing both sides of the house and “running information back” to the “Icons” trio of Dee Valladares, Rick Devens and Angela Murray. The surgical dental assistant’s treachery cut deeper when Aurichio learned he had told Kamu Kirk that she was targeting him, a move that shattered her trust in their “FAP” alliance with Barrett Pfeiffer and Melody Morris.
“I always knew he was tight with the ‘Icons’ and I knew he talked too much, but I had been kind of assuming he had my best interests and he didn’t,” she said.
Aurichio’s assessment of Campbell’s chances at the $750,000 prize was blunt. She compared his gameplay unfavorably to Barrett Pfeiffer’s, noting that while both men had engaged in similar double-dealing, the house’s reaction to each could not be more different.
“Even though I think Barrett has been doing similar things as Drew, he’s still playing a much better game than Drew,” she told us. “I can’t even really put the words for the differences, but people really don’t like Drew,” Aurichio continued. “But people still trust Barrett and Barrett showed me loyalty in the end.”
The evicted houseguest’s harshest characterization of Campbell’s standing came in a separate observation about his popularity. “He’s one of the most disliked people in the house,” she said, making clear that his social game had cratered alongside his strategic credibility.
Among the remaining newcomers, Aurichio identified Yash Patel as the player best positioned to win. “Everybody likes Yash. He’s very good at competitions and for the majority of the game, everyone kind of assumed that Yash was working with them, even though he wasn’t,” she explained. “He was on the block first week and then he hasn’t been on the block for a really long time.”
Aurichio also weighed in on the “Icons” and whether their veteran status gave them an unfair edge. She acknowledged that Devens “has been playing the best game” among the three returning players, calling him “very smart and calculated” and crediting him with making “a lot of big moves.” Yet she conceded the trio benefited from structural advantages built into the season’s design.
“They definitely did start with a little bit of an advantage,” she said. “They were the only ones that could compete in the first HOH. And then all three of them were voted into the time capsule.” The pre-existing relationships compounded the edge, Aurichio noted: “Coming in as three ‘Icons,’ you kind of have an alliance already formed, and Dee and Devens knew each other outside of here. So they definitely did have some upper hands.”
Aurichio’s eviction came after weeks of navigating a house fractured between new players and returning favorites, with alliances shifting and secrets spilling at every turn. Her ouster followed the collapse of her trust in Campbell, whose role as an informant for the “Icons” ultimately left her without the numbers to survive.
“Big Brother 28” airs every Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday at 8 p.m. ET on CBS and is available to stream the next day on Paramount+.