Warning: This page contains spoilers for the September 16, 2024, game of Jeopardy! — please do not scroll down if you wish to avoid being spoiled. Please note that the game airs as early as noon Eastern in some U.S. television markets.
Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category History) for Monday, September 16, 2024 (Season 41, Game 6):
A 1976 report initiated by Admiral Rickover found it was an internal, not external, explosion that caused the destruction of this
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Aiden Orzech, a teacher from Thornhill, Ontario, Canada |
Sam Watson, a pharmacy software salesman from Westwood, Kansas |
Evan Suttell, a nonprofit program assistant originally from Lakewood, Ohio (1-day total: $20,200) |
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Week 2 of Season 41 of Jeopardy! opens with Ohio’s Evan Suttell as our returning champion after his victory in Friday’s game. He faces off today against Sam Watson and Aiden Orzech.
One interesting thing from Friday is that Evan didn’t bet to cover in Final Jeopardy. Being that this week’s games were taped the day immediately after last week’s, it’s quite possible that Sam or Aiden witnessed this happen as an alternate. In general, if you’re facing a leader who you know doesn’t bet to cover in Final Jeopardy, your betting strategy from second place against him would be to make an all-in wager in Final Jeopardy. It’ll be very interesting to see how things pan out in Final Jeopardy.
Apropos of nothing on this Monday morning: I suspect that there are going to be some “looked a gift horse in the mouth” vibes in the community early this week, and I would like to remind this community that excessive complaining about the information that the show provides—especially on Reddit—can often lead to that information no longer being available to the community, especially as Reddit complaints get amplified into “news” articles—and this community would 100% be worse off for it. So, there’s really not much at all to be gained by complaining online about the information the show gives its viewers, because it absolutely could make for a worse fan experience in the future.
(Content continues below)
My friends over at Geeks Who Drink have introduced a daily trivia game—Thrice! Existing to make daily clever trivia content accessible to a wide audience, it's a daily challenge that tries to get you to the answer via three separate clues. It has a shareable score functionality to challenge your friends and new questions every day will give you a new daily social ritual! You can find it at thricegame.com!
Are you going on the show and looking for information about how to bet in Final Jeopardy? Check out my Betting Strategy 101 page! If you want to learn how to bet in two-day finals, check out Betting Strategy 102!
Are you looking for information on how to stream Jeopardy! in 2024? Find out information here on how to stream from most places in North America!
Do you appreciate the work I do here on The Jeopardy! Fan? Would you like to make a one-time contribution to the site? You may do so here!
You can find game-by-game stats here at The Jeopardy! Fan of all 17 players, now including Adriana Harmeyer, that have won 10 or more games on Jeopardy!
You can now listen to Alex Trebek-hosted Jeopardy! episodes from TuneIn Radio without leaving The Jeopardy! Fan — listen now!
Correct response: What is the (USS) Maine?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2024 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
On February 15, 1898, the American battleship USS Maine exploded in the Havana Harbor. Immediately, many American newspapers—most famously the New York Journal and New York World—took to “yellow journalism” misinformation tactics that would absolutely be familiar to 21st-century media audiences, exaggerating and distorting information and blaming a Spanish mine for the explosion on the ship. The explosion on the Maine turned into a major reason for the start of the Spanish–American War.
Many decades later, famed Navy Admiral Hyman Rickover—who, via his stature as the “Father of the Nuclear Navy”, is likely held in incredibly high regard by at least one of the regulars here in the comments at The Jeopardy! Fan—conducted his own private investigation as to what happened on the ship. Rickover came to the conclusion in 1976 that the explosion had been caused by a fire in a coal bunker on the ship, publishing How the Battleship Maine Was Destroyed.
Normally, I’d have a better idea as to how this Final Jeopardy clue is going to play. However, being Canadian, I don’t have as strong of a read as to how well-known this part of the Maine‘s story is. If this clue showed up in a Tournament of Champions, JIT, or Masters context, I would likely 100% be praising it as a deeper cut about a topic that all viewers would already be familiar with. I’m just concerned that this clue as presented here in The New York Times is one clue short for regular play; if I were writing this for regular play, I’d have added “over 75 years before” to the end of this clue and let contestants play a game of “do the math”. Certainly, this clue has the possibility to stop the Canadian Aiden in his tracks.
We have many new offerings at The Jeopardy! Fan Online Store! Here are our current featured items:
Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Monday, September 16, 2024 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: 1964 Firsts; Fun With U.S. State Capital Names; 3-Letter Verbs; All Lies On Me; Boxing; Familiar Furniture)
Sam got the Daily Double correct early, but Aiden stormed back to lead after 15 clues. At the interviews, Aiden had $2,600 to Sam’s $2,000 and Evan’s -$200.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Aiden 4 correct 0 incorrect
Sam 4 correct 1 incorrect
Evan 4 correct 3 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Aiden teaches at the school where he went to elementary school.
Sam got engaged in Paris.
Evan has a great memory of the first three seasons of “Spongebob Squarepants”.
While a number of incorrect responses kept the scores down in this segment, Aiden still led after 30 clues.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Aiden 7 correct 2 incorrect
Sam 7 correct 2 incorrect
Evan 9 correct 5 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Aiden $2,800
Sam $2,400
Evan $1,200
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Working From “Home”; Translate The Doc Talk; Gone Country; Chasing Rainbows; Stage Directions In Shakespeare; Exits & Entrances)
Sam got to both DD2 & DD3; splitting them both for a pair of $2,000 wagers. Aiden, meanwhile, picked up 11 correct to ensure he led going into Final. Evan, though, was still in contention going into clue #61.
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Aiden 18 correct 2 incorrect
Evan 16 correct 6 incorrect
Sam 12 correct 3 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 0 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Aiden $15,600
Evan $9,600
Sam $5,600
Both Evan and Aiden got Final Jeopardy correct; this makes Aiden our new Jeopardy champion! He’ll be back tomorrow to defend.
Tonight’s results:
Sam $5,600 – $0 = $5,600 (What is the Challenger?)
Evan $9,600 + $9,600 = $19,200 (What is the USS Maine?)
Aiden $15,600 + $11,999 = $27,599 (What is the Maine?) (1-day total: $27,599)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) FUN WITH U.S. STATE CAPITAL NAMES $600 (clue #7)
Sam 1400 +1000 (Evan -600 Aiden 800)
2) EXITS & ENTRANCES $1200 (clue #17)
Sam 4000 +2000 (Evan 6400 Aiden 10400)
3) TRANSLATE THE DOC TALK $1600 (clue #23, $7600 left on board)
Sam 7600 -2000 (Evan 7200 Aiden 14400)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 95
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Evan 1 2 2
Sam 4 3*
Aiden 1 3
DJ! Round:
Evan 3 1 2 3 1 5†
Sam 2 4 3 3 3* 2† 4† 4*
Aiden 1 2 3 4 5 4 5 5 2
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Aiden 3.18
Evan 2.22
Sam 3.20
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 0 (0.00 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Aiden $15,600 Coryat, 18 correct, 2 incorrect, 29.82% in first on buzzer (17/57), 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
Evan $9,600 Coryat, 16 correct, 6 incorrect, 38.60% in first on buzzer (22/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Sam $6,400 Coryat, 12 correct, 3 incorrect, 15.79% in first on buzzer (9/57), 2/3 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $31,600
Lach Trash: $14,000 (on 13 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $8,400
Lead Changes: 7
Times Tied: 5
Player Statistics:
Evan Suttell, career statistics:
40 correct, 9 incorrect
3/4 on rebound attempts (on 10 rebound opportunities)
36.84% in first on buzzer (42/114)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $1,200)
2/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $13,200
Sam Watson, career statistics:
12 correct, 4 incorrect
2/3 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities)
15.79% in first on buzzer (9/57)
2/3 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $1,000)
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $6,400
Aiden Orzech, career statistics:
19 correct, 2 incorrect
3/3 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
29.82% in first on buzzer (17/57)
0/0 on Daily Doubles
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $15,600
Aiden Orzech, to win:
2 games: 47.083%
3: 22.168%
4: 10.437%
5: 4.914%
6: 2.314%
Avg. streak: 1.890 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
- While I can see the math behind Aiden’s bet in Final Jeopardy, I still think that it was unnecessarily risky, especially considering that it allowed Sam back into contention needlessly.
- Today’s box score will be linked to when posted by the show.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Aiden $15,600 Evan $9,600 Sam $5,600)
Evan: Bet at least $2,400 here. I would limit my bet to $3,999 here to force Sam to be correct to pass me for second. (Actual bet: $9,600)
Sam: I would bet at least $1,600—in case Evan does just bet $2,400—and limit my bet to $2,000 (in case Evan bets $6,001.) (Actual bet: $0)
Aiden: Standard cover bet over Evan is $3,601. (Actual bet: $11,999)
Become a Supporter now! Make a monthly contribution to the site on Patreon!
Contestant photo credit: jeopardy.com
When commenting, please note that all comments on The Jeopardy! Fan must be in compliance with the Site Comment Policy.
If you are going to quote any information from this page or this website, attribution is required.