As a mechanical engineer, Christian Hubicki designs robots to run and walk on two legs.

Can the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering assistant professor use the same smarts to direct and influence human relationships to win a $1 million prize on one of network television's longest-running reality shows?

Viewers will get a chance to find out if Hubicki can outwit 19 other castaways this season on “Survivor” on CBS.

The 37th season of "Survivor" premieres at 8 p.m. Wednesday on WCTV (Channel 9 on Comcast) with a special 90-minute episode pitting the “Davids” vs. “Goliaths” tribes in a hurricane setting in the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji.

It’s a dream come true for Hubicki, 32, a former post-doctoral fellow at Georgia Tech who began teaching as an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering this fall.

As a 14-year-old growing up in Baltimore, he became enamored with the show and its lessons in human endurance and social interactions.

“I’ve never missed an episode for all 36 seasons,” Hubicki said. “I think this show has a lot of relevance to the human spirit. It tells you a lot about who you are when everything is taken away from you — your home, your phone, most of your clothes — and you find out what you are like without all those things, what you are made of.”

Hubicki sent in his application last September, and to his surprise, got a call back from the producers right away.

“I talked about how I am a robotics research scientist and how 'Survivor' is every bit as complicated as the job of programming robots,” he said. “Imagine playing chess with 19 other players. It’s a uniquely challenging game that requires you to bring every scrap of wit you can to the table.

“I emphasized that all of the tools you use to control robots is very similar to the game of 'Survivor,'” he continued. “With robots, you first figure out how the robot works. Similarly, when you are out on the island, you have to know what makes everybody tick. You have to know what their motivations are.”

And, as in research, you have to understand collaboration, he said.

“You have to find allies in the game to advance,” he said. “You have to have people like you, so they will work with you to advance.”

In February, Hubicki learned he was chosen for the show. The 39-day filming began this spring.

“I got to meet (host) Jeff Probst and he said I talked about the game in a way he never heard before,” Hubicki said excitedly. “And, I think that shows him I had an interesting enough view to give me a shot.”

Details and outcomes are secret, but Probst, the show’s host and executive producer, gives Hubicki a shout out in his “top three reasons” to watch this season:

#1: Weather: It’s back in play on “Survivor” and it has an impact.

#2: The question we’re asking: It’s not who has the advantage, it’s what is the advantage?

And 3: Christian.

Getting the call for "Survivor"

When he got the return call in September showing real interest, Hubicki said he started preparing. Any fan of the show knows it’s not for the weak.

His first thought?

“I have to get in shape,” Hubicki said. “There is no way I could be the biggest and strongest person out there, but I had to get strong enough so I wouldn’t be a liability.”

He started what he called “an aggressive push-ups workout strategy,” something he admits wasn’t part of his daily routine. His goal was 50 push-ups a day, eventually working up to 300 daily.

But that wasn’t all.

“At the last possible minute, I learned to make fire with a flint and machete,” he said.

Sizing up the competition

The name of the show and even the fact he was chosen had to remain a secret. He didn’t tell anyone except close family he had even applied for “Survivor.”

One person became inquisitive and started searching the internet to find out when certain shows are filming. The friend was convinced Hubicki was prepping for an appearance on “The Bachelorette.”

He didn’t correct the person.

While he suspected the show might be filmed in Fiji, Hubicki said nobody knew until the cast was taken to Los Angeles International Airport for the flight.

It was there he first got to eyeball his competition. Even that was controlled by the show’s policies.

“It’s a really surreal situation,” he said. “You see for the first time all of the cast members, but you are not allowed to talk to anybody because they want to save that for the island.

“It’s both exciting and nerve-wracking,” he said. “Everyone is kind of sizing everyone up as their competition.”

He soon learned the competitors “are some very smart, accomplished people.”

Also, very physically fit people.

“One is a professional wrestler; he’s on the Goliath team,” Hubicki said. “I was on the David team. One woman is a professional businesswoman who went to Stanford and Yale.”

Another is a professional Hollywood screenwriter.

Hubicki is one of three castaways now living in Florida.

Jessica Peet, a 19-year-old waitress living in Lakeland, also is a “David,” and Dan Rengering, a 27-year-old SWAT officer from Gainesville, is a “Goliath” team member.

Hubicki said everyone learned about the others' backgrounds once the game started.

“You will see that moment on television on Wednesday,” he said.

Upon hearing Hubicki was a robotics engineer “with a passion for science,” one cast member called him, “The Big Bang Theory.”

“It’s clearly left an impression,” Hubicki said.

“You have people from all walks of life who are very skilled in their respective fields and you have to show why you are the one who can beat them all.

"At the same time, you are in this harrowing situation with them,” he said. “It’s hard not to bond with someone with whom you have survived a hurricane.“

'It’s very real'

Hubicki said it makes for a “complicated relationship” in that the winner walks away with the $1-million prize. His first impression was he had his work cut out for him.

“I’m going to have to use every ounce of wit and charm to get through this game,” he said. “I was always in the moment. What do I have to do right now to advance? That kept me from panicking too much.”

CBS released names of the castaways earlier this month, so some colleagues are aware the new professor will be on national television.

“I think the College of Engineering is not used to having their professor live on an island,” he said, explaining he accepted the job in Tallahassee the day before he left for Fiji. “I think they are a little surprised.”

Eric Hellstrom, chairman, department of mechanical engineering, said Hubicki being chosen for “Survivor” shows he’s “outgoing, competitive, ambitious, and resourceful” — the same characteristics of successful faculty members.

For now, Hubicki said, he plans to watch Wednesday’s premiere with his girlfriend, but that could change.

He said what’s important is what viewers won’t see.

“It’s 39 days long,” he said of the filming schedule. “There is no escape, there is no hotel. There is no buffet table when the cameras aren’t looking at you. You are being rained on. It’s very real."

Contact senior writer Byron Dobson at bdobson@tallahassee.com or on Twitter @byrondobson.