Elizabeth Feltner got the text on her birthday, Sept. 21, 2021—did she have a few minutes to discuss becoming a contestant on the long-running, beloved game show, “Jeopardy!”? The answer? What is ‘Hell, yes?’
Feltner, a fifth-year political science and business administration major at Northeastern and an avid “Jeopardy!” fan, had applied to be in the National College Championship nearly a year before she received the text. She ended up speaking with one of the show’s producers on Sept. 22, and soon she was spending Thanksgiving weekend competing with 36 other college students for a grand prize of $250,000 and bragging rights as the Jeopardy! National College Champion. The competition, which boasts a prime-time spot on ABC at 8 p.m., begins airing tonight.
“It was an incredible experience. Everyone was so nice,” says Feltner, who had applied to be a contestant three times before she was invited on the popular quiz show. “We were sitting there and doing a practice round on our first day, and they showed us the intro they’d be playing before each show,” says Feltner. ”It was 9 a.m. and I was on the verge of tears, like, ‘How did this happen? How is this real life?’”
