Ken Jennings might be Jeopardy!'s GOAT, but James Holzhauer's Rutter roasts must be recognized

By Randall Colburn  |  January 15, 2020 | 5:56pm
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Ken Jennings might be Jeopardy!'s GOAT, but James Holzhauer's Rutter roasts must be recognized
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Jeopardy! OG Brad Rutter failed to launch during the show’s Greatest Of All Time tournament, winning zero games to James Holzhauer’s one and Ken Jennings’ four. But he’ll always be remembered in the Jeopardy! canon, not just for being the highest-earning American game show contestant of all time, but also for getting roasted to an absolute crisp by Holzhauer.

During last night’s final battle, host Alex Trebek wiped the scores on the board clean at one point, which didn’t matter for Rutter, who, by that point, had failed to win any cash. That was abundantly clear to everyone involved, but Holzhauer couldn’t help but rub a little salt in the wound. “Hey, Brad’s score is still on there,” Holzhauer cracked to a chorus of delighted gasps. Rutter, used to this by now, could only absorb the burn best as he could.

Of course, this wasn’t the first zing administered by Holzhauer, a gleeful trash talker who previously made headlines for his online duels with Jennings. Last week, he squeezed in a Muntz-esque “ha-ha” after beating Rutter to the buzzer for about the hundredth time.

None of this is lost on Rutter, who clapped back at Holzhauer with a dig of his own after Jennings was declared the winner last night. “Have the New Orleans Saints been in touch about a job?” he asked. “Because with their tendency to talk a bunch of trash after losing in the playoffs, you’ll fit right in.”

This was retweeted by Holzhauer, who, in the wake of his loss, thanked his fellow contestants for being “incredibly good sports about my kayfabe feuding and trash talk.” (Kayfabe, if you’re unaware, is a professional wrestling term for presenting the staged as if it were real.)

He also took a moment to highlight Rutter’s incredible five Jeopardy! tournament wins, a record that dwarfs those of he and Jennings (and, for kicks, Donald Trump).

Somebody give these guys a show.

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