Steve Moses was crowned the winner of Big Brother 17 last night when he managed to best his biggest competitor, Vanessa Rousso, in a three-round competition and move on to face a Jury who sided in his favor.
Now with the season behind him and a half-million dollars in his pocket we got to talk with Steve about the experience, what he thought of the Jury vote, and what were his best and worst moves in a Big Brother summer that all came down to one last question.
Big Brother Network: Tell us about your reaction to Vanessa voting for Liz instead of you at F2.
Steve Moses: I was actually really surprised. If Vanessa had burned me, she would have had my vote one million percent. I acknowledged she’s a brilliant player, arguably the best female player that Big Brother has ever seen. She’s really, really good, but that’s the same reason I couldn’t take her.
But her vote, I mean, I was surprised with her vote. She made a promise with Liz and wanted to keep it. Why that trumps my promise? I’m not sure, but that’s her Jury vote and she’s allowed to do what she wants with it. If she thinks Liz better represented the season then that’s how she should vote.
BBN: When did you realize that Vanessa had to go and you couldn’t get to F2 with her?
Steve: The moment for me was when Austin was HoH and he should have put up James and Meg, but Vanessa was nervous about me being loyal to Johnny Mac over her so Vanessa got Austin to flip and put up me and Johnny Mac instead. I realized that’s just how powerful manipulator and influencer she was and charismatic she is.
BBN: If you had kept Vanessa, how do you think that vote count would have turned out?
Steve: I have no idea. My speech would have been very different. The only way I could have beat Vanessa would have been pandering to a bitter Jury. I would have talked about character, ethics, and how I maintained my morality. It’s funny because I had no intention of playing this game with morals or ethics but that’s the only way I could beat Vanessa.
BBN: Do you feel like you played the game with morality, ethics, integrity, etc?
Steve: Integrity and morality have no place in the Big Brother house. If you’re trying to prove what a good character you have, a reality show is not the place to do it. I came here to play a game.
BBN: You talked about your F2 deal with Vanessa in the DR and feeling confident you were her only F2. How do you feel finding out there might have been some more out there?
Steve: Kudos to her for getting me. She played a great game. She got me. It was the same thing Derrick did last year, but I knew I couldn’t take her. I guess Derrick had Cody more wrapped around his finger than Vanessa had me wrapped around hers.
It’s another piece of evidence on why Vanessa was such a great player and why I couldn’t take her to the end.
BBN: Let’s talk about the Final 4 Veto competition. We watched you worry over your decision to throw that competition. Did you really throw that and did Vanessa convince you to do it?
Steve: That had nothing to do with Vanessa. That was my own decision. I spent a lot of time questioning if that was the right decision. I even lied to Vanessa and said I didn’t throw it.
The reason I made that decision was because I was so worried that by winning both the F4 HoH and F4 Veto that makes me such a huge target and just asks for people to not take me to F2 if they’re the final HoH. I was afraid that’d put me in a must-win F3 situation with the final HoH. I didn’t want to do that.
BBN: The “What The Bleep” tie-breaker where you said you forgot a zero. Was that true or were you throwing it?
Steve: Throwing F4 HoH is never a good idea. I did not throw it. I just did a terrible job.
BBN: We saw a lot of angst towards Becky in your early DRs. What caused that?
Steve: Becky would not gametalk with me at all. I remember what happened was, she was HoH in Week 2 and we were talking about her nominations. I said if you don’t put me up this week I won’t put you up if I win HoH in the next two weeks. She acted like I threw a hot potato at her that she couldn’t get away from fast enough.
Several times after that I tried to have gametalk with her, but it would not happen at all. So if this girl isn’t willing to have any kind of gametalk with me then I’m going to think she’s against me.
I love Becky as a person. I don’t have a bad thing to say about her, but her not talking to me left with nothing to assume but that she was coming for me.
BBN: What was your biggest mystery through the season?
Steve: I’ve been wondering all summer, what was America voting on. Is it a Team America, America’s Player, MVP? And there was no voting the entire summer. No interactive twists. Just a straight up game of Big Brother. Essentially last year plus add the twins and the three Takeovers.
BBN: What were your best and worst moves of the season?
Steve: Worst is easy to go back to that F4 Veto. I go back and forth with the information I had at that time. I still don’t know based on the information I had at that time.
Best move was laying low at the beginning and getting the attention off of me. I think sitting at the bottom of a 5-person alliance with 14 people in the house really did wonders for me. Then I was also willing to go back on it when I was done with it. Really I should have gone after Johnny Mac at F6, but hello, taking a 3-person alliance with Austwins? Bad idea.
I hate to say it, but Vanessa last night. Needed to be done, and frankly I should have probably done it earlier than I did.
BBN: Are you done with Big Brother? Would you ever come back?
Steve: I’m very grateful and thankful that the first time I applied I got on the show and one, but I don’t see myself doing this again. It’s just so wearing and tearing.
Watch our preseason interview with Steve Moses to see just how far he came in his game this season.