RY-LED UP
Jeopardy! fans stunned by new winner Ryan Long’s MASSIVE bets and insist he’s ‘opposite’ from ex-champ Mattea Roach
JEOPARDY! fans were stunned as rideshare driver Ryan Long cruised to his 4th win Wednesday in a surprise finish.
But before that, many went wild over his MASSIVE bets some insisted were ‘opposite’ ex-champ Mattea Roach.
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Mayim, 46, is hosting Jeopardy! for a second week in a row, returning after Ken Jennings' prior three weeks at the helm and announcement he'd be out for "months."
The permanent hosting slot, however, is still on the board and will be decided by the end of Season 38 in July 2022.
Amidst it all, fans are buzzing over now 4-day champ Ryan, who drove up $86K in total earnings tonight.
The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native, as Mayim noted, has now won the most games since Canadian tutor recent Mattea Roach's 23-game tear - but shocked fans were excited because tonight proved they "couldn't be more different."
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Last night, Ryan surprisingly wagered a massive $8000 during a Daily Double, helping him win the game.
"That's a big wager," one Twitter user wrote afterward.
And that was before tonight's move that had hundreds posting about the potential new streak-holder.
Yet again, Ryan boldly wagered - and won - $8000 - on a Daily Double.
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"Another $8000" the contestant calmly said before getting it right.
"Another $8000!" a surprised Mayim responded.
'WHAT A BET!'
One Twitter user wrote, "8k Daily Double again. Nice bet Ryan."
Another exclaimed: "Ryan is killing on #jeopardy!!!!"
A third remarked: "I love the contrast between him and Mattea. I loved Mattea and her active expressions. But I also love the fact that with Ryan, you get none of that."
Another noted on the tutor's tough customers, “Everyone who hated on Mattea, the new GOAT, better be singing their praises for Ryan. Zero emotion, zero ad lib, zero hand gestures. Just a silent assassin.”
Gameplay-wise, Mattea was even toyed with by Ken for her "conservative" betting strategy.
Ken, who hosted most of her run from April to early May - now the fifth-longest in history - joked on-stage once: "You've vocally regretted small wagers in the past. What will you do right now?"
With a smile, Mattea replied: " I'm going to continue not learning from my mistakes, and wager $2,000, just to be safe."
A Twitter user even pointed out as much during her streak: "You’ve now won ~$22.9K/ match. By comparison, Amy Schneider won $687.4K in 17 matches, avg. of $40.4K."
Meanwhile, for two nights now, Ryan has wagered more on Daily Doubles than she ever did.
And though Ryan did not get Final Jeopardy about a 1961 Oscar-winning song (Moon River) correct, quite surprising was what he did do.
He wagered another massive $10K, and sweetly wrote down: "Hi mom!" but still rowed his way to the win with the most earnings, $16K.
'WEIRD' & WATCHABLE
Though their gameplay strategies may be different, the humble player's Q&A answers, much like Mattea's, have sure been interesting.
Tonight the Philly figure shared he worked on an "Amish farm" in high school, then noting, "People are gonna think I’m weird with all these stories."
Last night, the broad-shouldered bet-maker shared he once fostered "four baby kittens" and "bottle-fed them" before his mom adopted them.
And during the Q&A before that, the contestant pumped out an Arnold Schwarzenegger impression.
"Ryan's stories make me <3 him even more," one fan applauded.
During Mattea's Q&As, the septum-pierced, wired-frame glasses-wearing wiz shared she has SEVEN tattoos including two LEG tattoos dedicated to the band The Talking Heads and was in a Rick Astley music video.
And of course, exclaimed "all my student loans are paid off!" during her first win, setting the tone for her attention-earning run.
Ryan, like Mattea, has also been keeping it real on his Twitter, sharing that he forgot his glasses in Philly.
"In case anybody’s wondering why I’m constantly squinting and adjusting during the game…it’s because my glasses are 3000 miles away, where they will do the most good," he this week.
He also shared in another tweet that he only brought "two shirts" to Culver City, and added a "huge shout out to the wardrobe department," in a third tweet, hinting there could be more to come.
"Ride share driver! Making it all even better," wrote a fan on his overall relatability.
WHO IS: PERMANENT HOST?
Ken and the Big Bang Theory actress started filling in for the legendary Alex Trebek after his tragic passing and a fleet of Season 37 celebrity guest hosts.
The show's ratings nearly doubled to 9.7M viewers when Ken made his first appearance.
When Mayim took over her hosting duties the headcount dropped to 5.9 million viewers during a college championship.
Even Mattea stated after her run she wanted Ken to take over.
"As a contestant, there is something really special about being on stage with the greatest player of all time," she told .
While it's still undecided, Mayim's other show, Fox's Call Me Kat, was just renewed for a Season 3.
Some critics claimed this was "the deciding factor," claiming Mayim will be "too busy" to do regular Jeopardy!.
However, in an interview today with , Mayim shared, “I’m definitely becoming more comfortable.”
When asked about becoming the face of the show, she responded, “I would love that.”
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Mayim was also tapped this week to host Celebrity Jeopardy, though the primetime special is a separate gig from the regular show.
Ryan will attempt to win his fifth game tomorrow - if so he'll qualify for the Tournament of Champions in November with Mattea and Amy Schneider.
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