Calhoun Community College mathematics instructor Matthew Riggle has experienced what millions of Jeopardy! fans only imagine: standing behind one of television’s most recognizable podiums, answering clues from host Ken Jennings and competing on the iconic quiz show.
Riggle taped his appearance earlier this year and spoke with 256 Today about the experience ahead of today’s broadcast, offering a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to become a contestant, prepare for the game and step onto one of television’s most famous stages.
Getting onto Jeopardy! is a lengthy process.
It begins with an online test. Those who pass may be invited to complete a second exam under supervision before advancing to an audition, where contestants play a mock game while producers evaluate more than just their trivia knowledge.
“They know everybody in that audition is capable,” Riggle said. “They’re looking for how do you respond under pressure? Can you keep the game moving? Are you an interesting person that would be good on TV?”
After making it through the audition, contestants are placed into a pool of potential players until they receive the call.
Riggle said he received a little more than a month’s notice before traveling to Los Angeles for the taping.
“They called to kind of check dates and have me hold my schedule to make sure I was actually available,” he said. “Then about a week after that, they called to formally invite me to go out to tape.”
A longtime fan of the show, Riggle said he vividly remembers watching Ken Jennings’ historic winning streak in 2004. This time, Jennings was the one welcoming him to the stage.
“He is very nice,” Riggle said. “During the commercial breaks, he will go and take questions from the studio audience, and you can tell he just really cares about making sure everybody has a great time and a good experience.”
Riggle said he approached the experience with more excitement than nerves.
Part of that confidence came from a visit to the studio a year earlier, when he and his fiancée toured the Jeopardy! set while vacationing in Southern California.
“I think that helped keep my nerves a lot lower than they would have been otherwise,” he said.
Preparing for the game meant brushing up on just about everything.
“I did study,” Riggle said. “Everything.”
Still, with only about a month between receiving the invitation and taping the show, he said the focus wasn’t on learning entirely new subjects.
“My focus was less about learning new things and more just kind of refreshing what I already knew, paying more attention to current news, current movies, just different things,” he said. “Trying to predict what they might ask, but the category could be just about anything.”
One aspect of the experience surprised him more than anything else.
Jeopardy! tapes five episodes in a single day, meaning contestants spend hours together waiting for their turn behind the podium.
“What surprised me the most is just how quickly we all kind of became friends,” Riggle said. “We have a group text going that’s been blowing up this week because all our episodes are airing.”
Riggle, who grew up in Madison before attending Western Kentucky University, now teaches mathematics at Calhoun Community College.
When asked whether appearing on Jeopardy! was the coolest thing he has ever done, he didn’t hesitate.
“Yes.”
He quickly added one exception.
“I’m getting married in August.”
Regardless of how the game turned out, Riggle said simply earning a spot on Jeopardy! was an accomplishment in itself.
“It’s already a win to make it,” he said.
North Alabama viewers can watch Riggle’s appearance on Jeopardy! when his episode airs Thursday and find out how the Calhoun instructor fared on one of America’s most recognizable game shows.
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