Warning: This page contains spoilers for the September 29, 2025, 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 Medieval Names) for Monday, September 29, 2025 (Season 42, Game 16):
He was accused of killing William de Heselrig & also pled not guilty to being a traitor, saying he was never a subject of the King of England
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Rebecca Thompson, a French teacher & researcher from Buffalo, New York
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Zach Knecht, a law clerk originally from Spring Hill, Florida
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Prasad Patil, an assistant professor of biostatistics from Burlington, Massachusetts (1-day total: $35,600)
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Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
It’s time for the start of Week #4 of Season 42; this week begins with returning champion Prasad Patil taking on Zach Knecht and Rebecca Thompson.
I think that many fans want to see 1-day champions such as Vickie Talvola, who departed the show on Friday, back in Champions Wildcard; that being said, I’m extremely concerned that she (and many others) won’t be. As things appear to be shaping up right now, the show has an issue in the respect that the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics is scheduled for February 6, 2026, with the Olympics going until February 22. It would not surprise me if the show’s intent in pushing up the start of the postseason was done to conclude the Tournament of Champions over with minimal Olympic pre-emptions. However—and this is where my concerns regarding the field makeup lie—the show’s taping schedule (4 tape days between the postseason cutoff and what appears to be the start of Second Chance) would imply that Second Chance is set to start December 15. From there, a schedule of “15 episodes of Second Chance, a 2-week Champions Wildcard, followed by a 21-player Tournament of Champions” would bring us to the tournament most likely ending on February 5 or 6. (with a chance of February 3, 4, or 9.). If that 2-week Champions Wildcard was constructed similarly to last season, that means only 12 non-qualifying champions will be joining 3 players from Second Chance. In my opinion, 12 is much, much too small of a number and will only serve to anger the fanbase.
There is a solution to this issue, though: I would like to remind the show that when Harry Friedman was operating things, episodes were sometimes taped out of order, in that tournaments sometimes were taped on a shorter lead time to airing than regular play episodes were. Thus, I would urge the show to act similarly here; if it is so concerned about having the Tournament of Champions complete in order to avoid possible Olympic pre-emptions, rearrange the airing schedule: expand the Champions Wildcard field to fit 3 weeks (either by having a 27-player tournament or by following my editorial suggestion from last weekend), push up the start of the postseason by a week, and have a few episodes of regular play taped prior to, but air after, the postseason. I believe that this simple change will make the largest number of viewers happiest overall.
Unrelated to the above two paragraphs, but still an important thing to say after this weekend, from Elie Wiesel’s Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech in 1986: “We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”
(Content continues below)
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Correct response: Who is William Wallace?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2025 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
William Wallace is best known today as a Scottish knight who served as one of the major leaders of the First War of Scottish Independence, and was the protagonist of the 1995 Oscar-winning film Braveheart.
During that war, a Wallace-led uprising at Lanark in May 1297 led to the killing of William de Heselrig, Sheriff of Lanark. Evading capture by the English until 1305, his defense against treason was that he had never sworn allegiance to Edward I, and thus could not be guilty of that crime. Nonetheless, Wallace was found guilty and sentenced to death via hanging, drawing, and quartering.
I could see this Final Jeopardy playing anywhere from 0-for-3 to 3-for-3, and I’m interested to see what happens!
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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Monday, September 29, 2025 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: The 20th Century; Fictional Females; Propositional Phrases; Writing Material; 5, 5; Second Chance QBs)
Prasad had the best start to the round, picking up 8 correct before the break. At the interviews, the scores were Prasad $5,200 Zach $800 Rebecca $600.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Prasad 8 correct 0 incorrect
Zach 3 correct 1 incorrect
Rebecca 2 correct 1 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Rebecca knows how to knit in the dark.
Zach met his fiancée in high school; he broke his arm on their first date rollerblading (because he didn’t know how).
Prasad joined a pipe & drum band at NYU.
Prasad continued picking up more than half of the correct responses, also getting $3,000 from the Daily Double en route to a big halftime lead.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Prasad 16 correct 2 incorrect
Rebecca 6 correct 1 incorrect
Zach 6 correct 2 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Prasad $11,400
Rebecca $2,200
Zach $2,000
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Science & Nature; A World Of Mountains; I Married My Co-Star; Near & Far Phrases; Caveat; Mentor)
While Prasad was much quieter this round, Zach found both Daily Doubles; splitting them. That split was likely enough to ensure that Prasad still led going into Final Jeopardy, but there wasn’t a runaway.
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Prasad 22 correct 4 incorrect
Zach 16 correct 5 incorrect
Rebecca 10 correct 2 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 3 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Prasad $13,400
Zach $8,400
Rebecca $3,800
While Rebecca was close, Zach was the only player correct in Final Jeopardy, and that makes him the new Jeopardy! champion! He’ll be back tomorrow to defend his title.
Tonight’s results:
Rebecca $3,800 – $500 = $3,300 (Who is Braveheart)
Zach $8,400 + $5,001 = $13,401 (Who Wallace) (1-day total: $13,401)
Prasad $13,400 – $3,401 = $9,999 (Who is Beckett?)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) WRITING MATERIAL $800 (clue #18)
Prasad 6200 +3000 (Zach 800 Rebecca 600)
2) A WORLD OF MOUNTAINS $1600 (clue #4)
Zach 2400 -2400 (Prasad 10200 Rebecca 1800)
3) CAVEAT $1600 (clue #16, $14000 left on board)
Zach 1600 +2000 (Prasad 13400 Rebecca 1800)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 48
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Prasad 4 5 3 2 3 4 5 1 3 3 4*
Zach 4 5 3 5 4
Rebecca 2 2
DJ! Round:
Prasad 3 4 5 2
Zach 4 3 4* 4 3 2 5 5 3† 3 4*
Rebecca 1
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Zach 3.81
Prasad 3.40
Rebecca 1.67
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 3 (0.19 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Zach $10,400 Coryat, 16 correct, 5 incorrect, 29.82% in first on buzzer (17/57), 1/2 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Prasad $11,200 Coryat, 22 correct, 4 incorrect, 43.86% in first on buzzer (25/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
Rebecca $3,800 Coryat, 10 correct, 2 incorrect, 15.79% in first on buzzer (9/57), 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $25,400
Lach Trash: $16,800 (on 11 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $11,800
Lead Changes: 3
Times Tied: 0
Player Statistics:
Prasad Patil, career statistics:
40 correct, 8 incorrect
0/0 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
38.60% in first on buzzer (44/114)
2/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $13,000)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $13,800
Zach Knecht, career statistics:
17 correct, 5 incorrect
1/2 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
29.82% in first on buzzer (17/57)
1/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$400)
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $10,400
Rebecca Thompson, career statistics:
10 correct, 3 incorrect
3/3 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
15.79% in first on buzzer (9/57)
0/0 on Daily Doubles
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $3,800
Zach Knecht, to win:
2 games: 31.541%
3: 9.948%
4: 3.138%
5: 0.990%
6: 0.312%
Avg. streak: 1.461 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
- Certainly, that $1,000 clue in PROPOSITION PHRASES, referring to “come up and see my etchings”, is definitely a clue that would play easier for the viewing audience at home than players in studio. I bet many at home will recognize it!
- Today’s J!6 clues can be found at the monthly archive.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Prasad $13,400 Zach $8,400 Rebecca $3,800)
Prasad: Standard cover bet is $3,401. I wouldn’t go any higher than this, just in case Zach chooses to lock in second place. (Actual bet: $3,401)
Zach: Bet at least $1,600 to have any chance of victory. (Actual bet: $5,001)
Rebecca: If you think Zach is going to bet to pass Prasad’s pre-Final Jeopardy score by $1, you’re safe to bet up to $399. Otherwise, if you think he’ll go with a minimum $1,600 bet, bet at least $3,001. (Actual bet: $500)
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Not related to Jeporday! today; but I just wanted to say thank you Andy for including Elie Wiesel’s comments. Being a member (not in Michigan) of the church that was attacked, 24 hours after another horrific attack on a bar, I have struggled to put into words how I feel.
If there is anything that I could say, it is that empty words and platitudes are not enough. Mental health, gun control, and so many other things in America could be fixed- but never are. It makes me sad to know that there are people so broken, so hateful, that they would attack and murder innocent church-goes or bar patrons. It makes me furious to know that leaders from both sides of the aisle will inevitably use the deaths of 7 innocent people this weekend to score political points and do nothing in the end.
I understand this may get taken down, but even if it does, it has been cathartic to write this somewhere as I am by-and-large off of social media for my own mental health. I hope everyone hugs their family a little closer, is a little bit nicer to the stranger behind you, and that, finally, one day we may see some actual change in this nation for the protection of innocent people.
I’m glad that I was able to give you a forum for your thoughts after what happened on the weekend.
I did not get today’s final. (I thought Rob Roy) But I sure that the producers decision not to accept Braveheart” as a correct response will make the “click bait” sites. Unlike the manufactured hysteria of those sites, I understood easily why “Braveheart” was not acceptable. “Braveheart” like Andy referenced is the lead role in a movie, based on the life of William Wallace. The clue called for Wallace’s actual name not something created by Hollywood.
I wholeheartedly agree that “Braveheart” is not an acceptable answer, although, I understand why someone might be able to come up with that instead of the actual person’s real name. That’s what happens, though, when an historical figure is popularized by a movie. As for me, I was able to start with “Braveheart” and then pull up from memory that the movie was about William Wallace.
Thank you to Peepo for expressing what many of us are feeling and for Andy for providing the forum for it to be publicized. Unfortunately, I don’t see much of anything being done to change things. Sad to say.
I can’t remember the question that the answer was “Guyana”. I was born there but now live in NA.Many people did not know where Guyana was. Had to identify as a former British
Colony and the only English speaking country in South America.
It was mixed up with Ghana in Africa.
Unfortunately for those of us old enough, Guyana will always be known as the place where Jim Jones led his followers to their demise in November 1978. 🙁
From what you mentioned about the upcoming Jeopardy! Postseason to avoid heavy Olympics preemptions, they should start it around December 1st with two Second Chance weeks, followed by two 15-player Champions Wildcard and then, the Tournament of Champions with the traditional 15-player format with the TofC Finals around January 22nd. That way, it finishes about a week before the Winter Olympics with the 3rd Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament starting February 23rd with regular gameplay from the end of January-early February to February 20th.
I had no idea on this FJ.