Towson University adjunct music professor wins ‘Jeopardy!’

By Morgan Lane, Staff Writer

At the start of Final Jeopardy, Jonathan Hugendubler was ready to accept his runner-up consolation prize.

On the episode that aired July 25, the chances of stopping the 16-time ‘Jeopardy!’ Champion Scott Ricardi from wrapping up season 41 of the program undefeated felt small. Hugendubler, who had accumulated $14,000 at this point, still trailed Ricardi’s $23,600 by $9,600.

All the Towson University adjunct music professor had to do was hang in there long enough to become a threat.

Ken Jennings, Jeopardy’s host, read the clue.

“According to one obituary, in 1935 he owned 13 magazines, 8 radio stations, 2 movie companies & $56 million in real estate,” Jennings said. 

Bright stage lights cast down on Hugendubler. The sound of the Final Jeopardy song filled the room, adding to the subtle suspense during the 30 seconds. 

The answer to the clue was William Randolph Hearst. Contestant Charlotte Cooper revealed the correct answer and doubled her earnings. She ended with $15,600. Hugendubler’s answer was revealed second. He, too, was correct and added $9,601 to his $14,000, making a total of $23,601. He stayed composed instead of celebrating.

To the crowd’s dismay, Ricardi wrote Howard Hughes and wagered $5,000, which brought him down to $18,600. Hugendubler had won.

“Words didn’t have any meaning,” Hugendubler said. “I was just kind of confused.”

He was officially a Jeopardy “giant-killer,” or a contestant who defeated a longstanding winner. Earning this title took over a decade of practice, repetition and perseverance.

After graduating from Shenandoah University in 2014 with a Bachelor’s in Music Theory and Composition, Hugendubler began taking the Jeopardy! Anytime Test, which is the first step to be considered for casting. He took the test every year until he landed an interview in 2024. In 2025, he got a callback.

Hugendubler’s fellow adjunct music professor and longtime friend Christopher Ciampoli watched the journey from trivia to TV show. 

“In some ways, it felt inevitable,” Ciampoli said. He said Hugendubler carried an encyclopedia in his bag during graduate school.

Hugendubler traveled to Los Angeles in July to compete on Jeopardy for the first time. He recalled seeing Ricardi blow through questions in the episodes earlier in the day, which got Hugendubler a bit nervous.

“That morning, I watched a lot of sports highlights and things like that to kind of get in the zone,” he said.

Multiple episodes are filmed in one day, so Hugendubler didn’t compete until later in the afternoon. Once he was on the stage, he got a new perspective of the atmosphere, and it looked nothing like how it does on TV.

“I could see my family the entire time,” Hugendubler said.

Once he found his groove, he began focusing on timing the buzzer. He practiced this repeatedly in preparation for the show and even bought a mock buzzer to practice this skill. But he described the difference as shooting free throws in an empty gym, versus doing it in a packed house.

“Mentally, it’s probably draining and requires a lot more stamina than most people would think,” Assistant Teaching Professor Jordan Chase said, who’s also a long-term friend of Hugendubler.

But practicing with a buzzer wasn’t the only way Hugendubler prepared for the show. 

According to Ciampoli, Hugendubler knows just about every country, capital and flag in the world. Before his Jeopardy studying, he would also memorize composer dates, sports statistics and music. He also hosts trivia at The Brass Tap Baltimore, where his friends and contestants tuned in to watch his Jeopardy! run. 

“We were all cheering for him during correct answers,” Chase said. “When opponents were correct, we would boo.”

In his second appearance on the show, the Season 42 premiere, Hugendubler became only the seventh giant-killer to win more than a single game after defeating a super champion. 

He swept the African History column during Double Jeopardy and went into Final Jeopardy with $29,800. After wagering $10,200 in Final Jeopardy and successfully answering the question, he won the game with $40,000.

His total winnings from the two episodes were $63,601.

Hugendubler’s friends describe him as having relentless curiosity, always knowing the words to songs of all genres and naturally having a wide knowledge base. 

“Soak in as much information as you can and read as much as you can,” Hugendubler said. “No fact is unimportant.”

On the second episode of Season 42, Hugendubler wagered $8,001 of his $21,200 for the day in Final Jeopardy. His final answer was incorrect, which bumped his total down to $13,199. His Jeopardy run was ended by Ian Morrison, who won the game with $22,009. Hugendubler got the runner-up prize of $3,000.

Over the course of three episodes, Hugendubler racked up a total of $66,601. He said he plans to use some of the money to put a down payment on a house.

Due to technical difficulties with The Towerlight’s website, this article was originally published in the Towerlight Today e-newsletter on Sept. 29, 2025. The article was posted to The Towerlight’s website on Oct. 5, 2025.

A previous version of this article misspelled William Hearst’s name as William Hurst. This article has been updated with the correct spelling. The Towerlight regrets this error.