Amateur league prodigy Jeremiah ‘ScaryJerry’ Leathe has been benched by his team, Disguised, after twenty games in the League of Legends Championship of the Americas (LTA) North.
This has drawn criticism towards Disguised, owned by streamer Jeremy ‘Disguised Toast’ Wang, and the LTA North (formerly LCS), led by Riot Games.
Amongst those calling into question the circumstances around the decision is none other than British caster for the Northern League of Legends Championship (NLC), Adrian ‘Jamada’ Wharlton-Thorne.
Who is ScaryJerry? How scary could he be?
The LTA North has had a long-standing history of preferring veterans and imports over amateur players.
The former AD-carry player for Disguised is one of the few players from the amateur North American (NA) scene who were given the opportunity to shine.
ScaryJerry was a potential star in the making as an NA Challenger League (NACL) winner, alongside his consistent finals appearances in the collegiate scene.
This was in spite of being up against proven talent at the time, such as Nicholas Antonio ‘Ablazeolive’ Abbott, Jonathan ‘Chime’ Pomponio, Jade ‘Sheiden’ Libut, and Milan ‘Tenacity’ Oleksij.
Now, just four months since being announced and twenty competitive games with Disguised, ScaryJerry has been benched and will continue as a streamer for the organisation.
Jamada comments on Disguised and LTA North
After the announcement, British NLC caster, Jamada, called out Disguised and LTA North on social media.
Initially, he poked fun at the move, referencing T1’s temporary bot laner Sin ‘Smash’ Geum-jae.
Having also been recently benched after just twenty-four competitive games with the team.
This sentiment was also echoed by collegiate esports coach Sean ‘Seanatonin’ Shannon.
Jamada would further add to this, calling ScaryJerry a “victim of the system.”
Further expanding on this statement, Jamada emphasised a flaw in the current LTA ecosystem which allows this kind of move.
Not defending level/performance etc and obviously there's many layers of thought that have to go into the decision but all factors compounded together just blows
— Jamada (@JamadaLoL) May 28, 2025
These points are supported by many fans who have also criticised the move after just a short time in the spotlight.
Is the LTA ecosystem flawed?
This kind of quick and decisive roster move is nothing new to esports, and especially to LTA North, back when it was known as the LCS.
The League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) had its fair share of roster moves after each split, or even during, for various reasons.
The most infamous of teams to do this in NA was TSM, who at one point benched a player before their debut at the start of the season.
NA has always left very few spaces for rookies to leave their mark.
The few that are given the chance often have long records in the amateur scene, making them, paradoxically, amateur veterans.
With only eight teams in LTA North, this issue has only worsened as fewer spaces are available.
Players like Robert ‘Blaber’ Huang, Eain ‘APA’ Stearns, Fahad ‘Massu’ Abdulmalek, and Alan ‘Busio’ Cwalina have tried to buck this trend.
Each of whom has proven themselves on the international stage against the best players in the world.
Despite their success, most teams sign players from other regions or veterans who’ve established themselves domestically.
As Jamada alluded to, ScaryJerry might just be another “victim of the system” in NA League of Legends esports.
Having written for Esports News UK since 2022, I’ve cultivated an extensive knowledge of all things esports.
Covering a wide variety of topics during my time as an esports journalist, it’s safe to say I’m a jack of all trades, if you’ll pardon the pun.
