GREENFIELD — An accomplished college student seeks this after winning $50,000 on an Emmy-winning game show.
What is… a job!
Indiana University senior Tyler Combs is searching for a political science position after scoring big in the “Jeopardy!” College Championship, the final round of which aired on Friday, April 17.
The winnings will provide a nice safety net as he seeks out an entry-level government position, preferably in Washington, D.C., after his online college classes wrap up May 1.
Combs, 21, a Greenfield-Central graduate, garnered a big following on social media while competing on the popular game show over the past two weeks. He placed second overall, a huge accomplishment given the fact more than 18,000 college students applied for a shot in the tournament.
Just 300 applicants were interviewed and only 15 were granted a spot on the long-standing game show hosted by Alex Trebek.
Combs and his parents, Hobert and Vicki Combs, traveled to Culver City, Calif. for the taping of the championship Feb. 3-4. Combs handily won his first-round match, which aired April 10, as well as his semi-finals round, which aired April 13. But he struggled to keep up with the eventual winner in the two-part final April 16-17.
Nibir Sarma, a sophomore at the University of Minnesota, took home $100,000 for first place; Xiaoke Ying, a sophomore at the University of Southern California, took home $25,000 for third.
“It was definitely the experience of a lifetime,” said Combs, who keeps in touch with many of his fellow “Jeopardy!” competitors in group chats.
When he landed a spot in the tournament, Combs was thrilled at the chance to compete, even if he didn’t make it out of the first round.
He started faithfully watching the show when he was in elementary school, tuning in with his parents each night.
Seeing their only child share the stage with Trebek and other contestants, with a buzzer in his hand, was nothing short of surreal, they said.
Combs said his parents are still talking nonstop about the family’s “Jeopardy!” adventure more than 10 weeks after the taping.
“During the final match, I was nervous, but they were nervous wrecks. My mom said my dad wasn’t even breathing at some point,” Combs recalled with a laugh.
While competing on the show was a bucket-list dream come true, Combs said the $50,000 cash prize was most certainly icing on the cake.
“The economy isn’t exactly doing so hot right now, so it’s really hard to find a full-time job. With those winnings I’ll now have the equivalent of a year’s salary for an average political science graduate, to help me coast along until the economy starts picking back up,” he said.
Wise words for a high-achieving college student who practices the art of making a goal and sticking to it — like the goal he made as a kid to compete on his family’s favorite game show.
His current goal is to land a job on Capitol Hill, working in foreign policy or national security.
He plans to update his resume this week, showcasing the fact he placed second in the “Jeopardy!” College Championship.
“It can’t hurt,” he said with a laugh.
No matter where he lands a job, Combs said one thing won’t change. He’ll always watch “Jeopardy!” faithfully, and he’ll always cherish his experience on the show. “I had been dreaming of it for years, so it really was the experience of a lifetime,” he said.
