Losing on Jeopardy! is tough for any contestant, but it’s especially disheartening for those who don’t perform well in the Second Chance and Wildcard tournaments. Stella Trout, a software engineer from Texas, seemed to be in that group after losing to Cameron Berry in the Wildcard Finals. However, she’s getting another chance to compete!
Okay, so we’re going to have to be patient – we won’t see them compete again until after the 2026 season finishes. But I was so excited to hear on the Inside Jeopardy! podcast that this amazing player is already confirmed as one of the first two contestants for the next Tournament of Champions! Michael Davies, the executive producer, actually announced it, and it’s fantastic news.
Stella, previously an alternate for the Tournament of Champions, will be the first contestant in the 2027 competition. She was thrilled with the news.
Michael Davies
I was thrilled to learn she was an alternate for this year’s tournament – she definitely showed she deserved to compete. (Cam Berry and Jonathan Hugendubler both proved themselves as well.) But I think she’d agree that earning a guaranteed spot next time would be even more rewarding than stepping in as a replacement.
It appears LaTrobe Trout didn’t find out about this exciting news right away. Producer Sarah Foss suggested she was told over the weekend, specifically during the Jeopardy! Honors ceremony where she received the Bounceback Award. Here’s how Foss described the situation:
It was a truly special moment, as you mentioned. She was completely surprised when we told her, after receiving her trophy and being recognized as a Bounceback Winner on Jeopardy!, that even though she wasn’t competing in the Tournament of Champions tomorrow, she’d be invited next year.
Sarah Foss
Stella Trout had a dramatic moment during Game 2 of the Wildcard Championship Finals. She wagered all of her $11,200 winnings on a Daily Double in the “Making Conservation” category. Unfortunately, she answered incorrectly – the clue was, “Within the Department of the Interior, this is the country’s oldest conservation agency,” and she guessed “What is the National Park Service?” – losing all of her money.
After winning the first game, Trout almost secured another victory with a strong comeback, but a wrong answer on Final Jeopardy seemed to end her chances. However, the judges reviewed the play and decided to reconsider their decision, as explained by Davies.
While reviewing the clue, the team at the Steven Dorfman Library discovered some key information. We primarily relied on the Fish and Wildlife Service’s official website, which stated the agency was founded in 1871 and is the oldest conservation agency in the nation. This research ultimately led us to identify the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as the correct answer.
Michael Davies
Sarah Foss explained that while Ken Jennings’ answer was technically correct based on the provided script, it didn’t reflect recent name changes within various government agencies.
Our research revealed a complex history for both agencies. The Fish and Wildlife Service actually dates back to 1871, though it was initially called the U.S. Commission of Fish and Fisheries, later becoming the Bureau of Fisheries. It didn’t officially become the Fish and Wildlife Service until 1940. While the National Park Service was established in 1916, the first national parks were created in 1872, meaning its origins aren’t as old as the Fish and Wildlife Service’s. However, as a unified agency with its current name, the National Park Service is older than the Fish and Wildlife Service.
Sarah Foss
Looking back, the problem wasn’t that the judges missed Stella Trout’s correct answer, but rather that the clue was too open-ended and could have had multiple valid solutions. Regardless, I’m very happy with how things turned out.
I really thought Trout, one of my favorite players from the 2025 season, would manage to qualify for the Tournament of Champions, even with strong competition from players like Jonathan and Harvey Silikovitz. It’s unlikely she’ll become a top 10 all-time Jeopardy! winner without an incredible stroke of luck, but I’m hoping she performs well enough to qualify for the invitational tournament eventually. (I don’t want to call it the JIT, and… oh, I just did!)
Sometimes, contestants are brought back if the judges realize they made a mistake, but this is rare. It only happens when a clearly wrong answer directly caused someone to lose. It’s not something that would happen over a smaller mistake early in the game. Hopefully, Stella Trout will be ready to make the most of her chance when the Tournament of Champions 2027 comes around.
You can still watch Jeopardy! every weeknight on local TV stations, and episodes become available to stream on Hulu the next day with a subscription.
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2026-01-20 19:10