The “Jeopardy!” Tournament of Champions — one of the quiz show’s most anticipated events each season — is underway, with contestants currently vying for a spot in the semifinals.
During Friday’s game, knowing about BYU football gave you a slight advantage.
BYU QB Jake Retzlaff gets a shoutout on ‘Jeopardy!’
In the game’s first round, “Jeopardy!” host Ken Jennings revealed the category “Playing Sportsball.”
The most expensive clue in the category, for $1,000, likely put a smile on the face of any Cougar fan watching at home: “In 2024 the only Jewish starting QB in college football was Jake Retzlaff of this Provo school, one of 3 M.O.T.s on the whole campus.”
Per “Jeopardy!” archives, contestant Mark Fitzpatrick came up with the correct response: Brigham Young University.
The category also featured clues about Bronny James, Roger Federer and Lionel Messi.
Fitzpatrick ended up winning the game, securing a semifinal spot in the Tournament of Champions.
What Jake Retzlaff has said about his Jewish faith at BYU
Retzlaff, who led the Cougars to an 11-2 season this fall, recently took part in a Jewish comedy event hosted by the Chabad of Utah County.
During the event, he shared how he has come to recognize God’s hand in him landing at BYU — and described how his own Jewish faith has been welcomed at the university, which is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Retzlaff, who is often referred to as the “BYJew,” told the crowd he hasn’t experienced any antisemitism at BYU or in Utah.
“I haven’t, and it’s been the opposite, frankly,” he said, as the Deseret News recently reported. “That’s one of the best things about BYU is how the university is so faith-centered that they just love to see faith in others, too, and the LDS faith has a funny fascination with Jews.”
Retzlaff, who is the first Jewish starting quarterback in BYU football history, previously told the Deseret News it’s a distinction he’s proud of.
“It is 100% something I have a lot of pride in, being a Jewish quarterback at BYU,” he said in 2023. “It is going to be kinda fun to show a face to the world that is Jewish, because you don’t see a lot of Jewish athletes in college football, or even in the pros.”
Did the Jake Retzlaff clue come from ‘Jeopardy!’ host Ken Jennings?
“Jeopardy!” has featured a number of clues connected to BYU and the Church of Jesus Christ over the years.
Last season, a game featured an entire category dedicated to celebrities with ties to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
In 2023, a clue highlighted the full name of the church. Jennings, who is a member of the church, previously said he did not bring that clue to the table.
“No, that was not me. I would not be injecting my own identity politics into the game,” he told the Deseret News during an interview about his latest book.
So it’s likely that Jennings, who was a recent BYU grad when he went on his 74-game winning streak and amassed $2.5 million, also did not bring the Retzlaff clue to the table.
Jennings has previously praised the “Jeopardy!” writers, who he said work diligently to make sure the many clues they write — there are 61 clues per game — are foolproof.
“You would not believe the work our amazing writers do, and they’re Emmy Award winning,” Jennings told the Deseret News during the 2023 writers strike.