Is Marylander Scott Weiss the next Ken Jennings?
Weiss, 35, from Walkersville, will bet, buzz in and answer questions with questions tonight on the popular quiz show “Jeopardy.”
Weiss, an assistant computer science professor at Mount Saint Mary?s University, knows the outcome of his “Jeopardy” appearances, taped in December, but due to contest rules is sworn to secrecy.
Weiss was one of 400 contestants selected from 25,000 hopefuls. “I was stunned that I was selected since the odds were so low,” he said. “It was so amazing. I was going ?eeek? around the house for weeks, and it?s still surreal.”
Weiss? colleagues were not surprised to hear “Jeopardy” chose Weiss.
“Scott is into all types of games and very, very bright,” said Fred Portier, chairman of math and computer science at Mount Saint Mary?s University. “He does crossword puzzles every day and coordinates our college trivia bowl, similar to the show ?It?s Academic.? ”
Married with a 3-year-old son, Weiss auditioned for the show online in March 2006 after years of watching “Jeopardy” and yelling answers at the TV.
Following a successful live audition in Washington, Weiss flew to Los Angeles for the real taping.
Host Alex Trebek relaxes a little during commercial breaks, Weiss said. However, the Canadian television icon can?t interact a lot with the contestants because he knows the answers. In addition to watching the show every weeknight, Weiss prepared for the nerve-racking, musical doo-doo-do by writing “questions to get in the mindset of the writers,” he said.
Weiss also practiced with a fake buzzer that Jeopardy supplied. “It?s a little easier when you?re on the show to buzz in because they have lights that come up on the side of the board to tell you when,” he said. “But it?s good to get into that feeling while practicing at home.”
Jeopardy airs on WMAR Channel 2 at 7 p.m.
