There's quite a bit of buzz surrounding a University of San Diego professor who debuted on "Jeopardy!" Tuesday night and took down one of the greatest players in the show's history on his way to becoming champion.
Dr. Andrew Tirrell, Ph.D., teaches political science and international relations at USD. He was the only contestant to correctly answer Final Jeopardy, which put him $14,000 clear of 21-day champion Cris Pannullo. Pannullo is 5th in all-time Jeopardy! winnings, behind greats like Ken Jennings, James Holzhauer, Matt Amodio and Amy Schneider, according to thejeopardyfanclub.com.
Dr. Tirrell's students, fellow faculty and friends watched his legendary performance on campus. The new champion took some time to talk to NBC 7 about his dream-come-true debut.
"It was something that I just always loved," Dr. Tirrell said, describing the show.
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"I did some, you know, quiz bowl stuff when I was in high school and in college and I just always loved trivia and I don't know, I guess it was a lifelong dream and I just decided to go for it. I saw an invitation to take the test to get on and I said -- well, I'll give it a shot," Dr. Tirrell added.
Dr. Tirrell expressed feeling hopeful about being on the show.
"Most people, you know, you're lucky to get on and of course, only one out of three people wins. But once I realized I was up against really a super champion, I think the number five in total winnings, I thought, well, that's gonna be pretty tough. And then I was there for the taping of the contest that showed last night. And saw him just, I mean he was fantastic. And I thought, this is looking pretty, pretty difficult. I don't know how this is gonna go!" Dr. Tirrell said.
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As a well-educated doctor, Tirrell does have his specializations.
"You know, the most embarrassing thing is one came up that, in theory, would be a dream category for me and I went straight for the big money and missed it. And so I think that humbled me a little bit was right in the beginning too," Dr. Tirrell said.
"Jeopardy!" airs on NBC 7 most weeknights at 7:30 p.m.
