Warning: This page contains spoilers for the November 26, 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.
Note: If you are in the San Francisco Bay Area, the episode airing today in that market is episode that originally aired yesterday in other markets. Here is the recap you’re looking for.
Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category Famous Declarations) for Wednesday, November 26, 2025 (Season 42, Game 58):
After an escape under darkness, a U.S. general told an Adelaide newspaper these 3 famous words on March 20, 1942
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Shannon Mastick, a patent attorney from Granger, Indiana
|
Krish Patel, an undergraduate student from Plano, Texas
|
Harrison Whitaker, a researcher originally from Terre Haute, Indiana (11-day total: $309,000)
|
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Be forewarned—today’s section is a bit of a longer one, I’ve got a few things to cover.
Firstly: Harrison Whitaker is now an 11-game champion, having won his third straight runaway game yesterday. Today, he tries to make it an even dozen victories against Krish Patel of Texas and Shannon Mastick of Indiana. Right now, I think the most surprising part of Harrison’s run is the fact that he is just 15-for-26 on Daily Doubles; most long-running champions are much stronger on those clues compared to the average player. If Harrison were to become much better on those clues specifically, he may become one of the top 10 players ever to compete on the show.
I would like to officially announce that changes are coming to how information will be presented here at The Jeopardy! Fan. While the “main information” (chiefly, the Final Jeopardy clue/correct response and the final result) will remain easily accessible, most of the extra information that I painstakingly write and compile every day, as well as the comments area for each episode, will be placed behind a login wall. Unfortunately, I believe this is the best way forward to combat the blatant theft of my work that has been happening. Implementation will occur in the coming weeks.
Yesterday on Substack, co-executive producer Sarah Whitcomb Foss made a claim that the show “coined” the term super-champion. This is a reminder that the term “super-champion” was originally a fan-coined term used on the show’s official message boards in 2003 to refer to 6-game champions in the “Sky’s the Limit” era, well before any usage by the show, and while the show believes it might have coined the term to refer to 10-game champions, this belief is not matched in reality, and any fan acquiescence to the changed definition has been done solely to prevent confusion. (She also accidentally claimed that superchampion Ray Lalonde won 3 games and not 13, but I think she eventually realized that mistake.)
One thing that I would like to note: if you believe that Harrison is not phrasing in the form of a question, your belief is incorrect. It might be quiet and slurred, but it is there. If and when there is no phrasing, the judges will tell us—they even go back and listen if they aren’t 100% positive, as evidenced by the number of times over the years where they will actually go back and take points away—including a game that even showed up in the weekend reruns a few weeks back. It should also be noted that those sorts of complaints in the comment section here is a violation of the Site Comment Policy here. But, if you see those comments elsewhere—especially on Facebook—feel free to remind your friends that the judges aren’t asleep at the wheel. (Apropos of nothing, it should also be noted that if a contestant feels that they’ve been the recipient of an incorrect ruling from the judges, the appropriate mechanism is to lodge an official protest with the show/Standards and Practices and not attempt to court public opinion—the latter feels like sour grapes.)
Tomorrow and Friday, thanks to the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, we are entering into the most-preempted pair of days of the season. As things stand right now, only a handful of markets in the country are entirely unaffected by the preemptions. Make sure to check Matt Carberry’s Google sheet of schedule changes in each market. Thankfully, there are more options to watch the show in 2025 if it does not air; check out your streaming options here.
(Content continues below)
Did you accidentally get logged out of your TJ!F Plus account? Log in here!
My friends over at Geeks Who Drink have 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. In case the show uses a tournament with wild cards in the future, there is also a strategy page for betting in tournament quarterfinals.
Are you looking for information on how to stream Jeopardy! in 2026? Find out information here on how to stream from most places in North America!
You can find game-by-game stats here at The Jeopardy! Fan of all 20 players, now including Jamie Ding, 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 “I shall return”?
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.)
To add some levity to everything, my first thought when I saw this Final was the correct response. My second thought was thinking how Harrison’s Final Jeopardy response yesterday, “What is ‘I prefer movies'” would also be a very amusing joke response to today’s Final Jeopardy.
Nine days after Douglas MacArthur escaped from the Philippines under the dark of night when he had been surrounded by the Japanese on the island of Corregidor, he arrived in Australia, announcing “I came through and I shall return”, with the final three words of that message—”I shall return”—being the phrase most associated with MacArthur today. He also kept his promise, with MacArthur himself leading the charge to liberate the Philippines in 1944 and 1945.
In order to redesign our merchandise area to serve you better in 2026, all merchandise sales have been temporarily taken offline. Look for a return in early 2026! All previous orders will still be supported.
Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Wednesday, November 26, 2025 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Your Sweet 16th (Century); Let’s Talk Turkey; Weights & Measures; Quest: Love; Squirrel Friends; Words That Differ By One Letter)
Even though Krish found the Daily Double, Harrison led after 15 clues. At the interviews, the scores were Harrison $4,200 Krish $2,200 Shannon $1,800.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Harrison 7 correct 1 incorrect
Krish 4 correct 1 incorrect
Shannon 2 correct 0 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Shannon met her husband at Notre Dame.
Krish became a fan of the show during Battle of the Decades.
Harrison literally ran into Taylor Swift at a film premiere.
Harrison picked up over half of the clues after the break to extend his lead.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Harrison 15 correct 2 incorrect
Krish 7 correct 2 incorrect
Shannon 2 correct 0 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Harrison $7,000
Krish $3,600
Shannon $1,800
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: From Their New York Times Obituary; Out-Of-This-World Literary Titles; Ends In “F”; Songs In The Movie; Free; Bird)
Harrison found both Daily Doubles, but briefly put the runaway at risk with a big bet and incorrect response on DD3. However, everything turned out fine for him—a number of correct responses from him at the end of the round made sure that Final Jeopardy was just a battle for second place.
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Harrison 29 correct 3 incorrect
Krish 13 correct 5 incorrect
Shannon 7 correct 1 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 6 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Harrison $17,200
Krish $5,600
Shannon $5,400
Harrison put the exclamation point on this one with a correct response; he’s now a 12-day champion and will celebrate Thanksgiving in an attempt at win #13 tomorrow.
Tonight’s results:
Shannon $5,400 – $5,400 = $0 (What is I got out)
Krish $5,600 – $5,201 = $399 (What is ? Hi Mark + Evan)
Harrison $17,200 + $3,800 = $21,000 (What is ‘I shall return’?) (12-day total: $330,000)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) YOUR SWEET 16th (CENTURY) $1000 (clue #2)
Krish 800 +1000 (Harrison 0 Shannon 0)
2) ENDS IN “F” $2000 (clue #17)
Harrison 17000 +3000 (Krish 3600 Shannon 3000)
3) OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD LITERARY TITLES $800 (clue #21, $4800 left on board)
Harrison 20800 -6000 (Krish 4400 Shannon 4200)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 89
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Harrison 4
Krish 5*
Shannon
DJ! Round:
Harrison 3 4 3 4 5 3 5 5* 4 2*
Krish 3 5 4 4 3
Shannon 4 5 3 2 5 2†
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Harrison 3.82
Krish 4.00
Shannon 3.50
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 6 (0.10 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Harrison $22,200 Coryat, 29 correct, 3 incorrect, 50.88% in first on buzzer (29/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Krish $5,600 Coryat, 13 correct, 5 incorrect, 29.82% in first on buzzer (17/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Shannon $5,400 Coryat, 7 correct, 1 incorrect, 12.28% in first on buzzer (7/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $33,200
Lach Trash: $10,800 (on 10 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $10,000
Lead Changes: 3
Times Tied: 0
Player Statistics:
Harrison Whitaker, career statistics:
351 correct, 38 incorrect
22/24 on rebound attempts (on 54 rebound opportunities)
47.51% in first on buzzer (325/684)
16/28 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $9,300)
8/12 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $23,900
Krish Patel, career statistics:
13 correct, 6 incorrect
0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
29.82% in first on buzzer (17/57)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $1,000)
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $5,600
Shannon Mastick, career statistics:
7 correct, 2 incorrect
1/1 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
12.28% in first on buzzer (7/57)
0/0 on Daily Doubles
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $5,400
Harrison Whitaker, to win:
13 games: 64.539%
14: 41.653%
15: 26.882%
16: 17.350%
17: 11.197%
Avg. streak: 13.820 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Harrison $17,200 Krish $5,600 Shannon $5,400)
Harrison: Bet no more than $5,999 and enjoy your victory. (Actual bet: $3,800)
Krish: In the battle for second, the standard cover bet over Shannon is $5,201. (Actual bet: $5,201)
Shannon: If you bet $4,999 or less and Krish is incorrect, you get an extra $1,000. (Actual bet: $5,400)
The new TJ!F Plus section is active! In order to get the Daily Details of each episode coming soon, as well as the ability to comment on posts site-wide, make sure to register for your account! It should be noted that if you have not registered for an account since December 13, 2025, that registration for a new account is necessary.
Did you accidentally get logged out of your TJ!F Plus account? Log in here!
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.
Have you had a chance to listen to our podcast game show, Complete The List, yet? Check it out! It's also available on Apple Podcasts.
Guessed correctly from 1942, general, three words. It’s not the first time Final Jeopardy has had “I shall return” as the answer. Last time involved matchbooks. Years ago when I was at White Sands Missile Range for the “Bataan Memorial Death March Marathon”, one of the speakers was a survivor of the death march. This frail old man in his 90’s started his talk with “if MacArthur were to walk into this room right now, I would kick his ***”.
First 3 words that came to mind.
My husbands uncle survived the Bataan death march. Later in life I bought a book “The Baby of Bataan’ from the author, Joe Johnson, for my son who is a WW2 fanatic. He delivered it to our house and we talked for a long while. It was about a boy who enlisted when he was 14 and ended up in the death march. Both of these gentlemen hated McArthur’s guts.
Several years ago I read a book “Ghost Soldiers”. It covered the Death March, but that was not the focus of the book. I recommend it, although it is not always an easy read. The realities of war are not easy to absorb.
This one just popped into my head after a couple of seconds.
I’ve been lurking on the website since Austin’s run years ago. Seriously cannot believe that my face and name are on this website and that I even got to be a contestant. Thanks for all the work you do to post these each day and maintain a positive environment, Andy!
congrats for making most of our dreams come true for you
Congratulations, Krish. So cool you were part of the show.
I am rarely able to see the full show, but I did see some today. Seemed like tough boards. You were good.
So great that you got to play Jeopardy on the Alex Trebek State! 🙂 Closest I’ll ever be is being in the audience, which I have now done 5 times. Need to get to a 6th soon!
I’d be happy to have my login info saved if necessary for the site’s security.
Congrats to Harrison on making Club 300 yesterday, and congrats to the contestants on a good game!
Thankful for having a Dad and Grandpa who run a WWII museum and made this an easy get for me 🙂
Peepo!
That is fascinating. Where is the museum?
I guessed the correct answer thanks to remembering the line from a Looney Tunes cartoon titled “A to Zzzzz” where Ralph is daydreaming throughout the school day and says it at the end of the day during his last daydream of the school day.
🤣That’s hilarious !
2nd day in a row I had the correct response to the day’s Final Jeopardy similar to how it came to DruidoftheFang.
Jeopardy in Chicago was interrupted by ABC News coverage of a Press Conference held to update people what was happening in the investigation of the shooting of the two National Guardsmen in D.C.
So I read the Final Jeopardy answer/clue here. A few moments, considering the year, A US General, and,”three famous words” had the response “what is ‘I will return.’ always thought it was something McArthur said when leaving the Phillipines. But in watching both versions of the Art Fleming Jeopardy, and, the Alex Trebec/Miram Bailic/Ken Jennings edition, have learned that a lot of times what you think happened in history isn’t always (completely) correct.
MacArthur’s line is so famous, I felt surely this would be a Triple Get. I thought the only way someone might miss it was if they thought it was too obvious. Two out of three contestants showed me that the line is not as well known as I thought.
Another thought I had was that if someone knew they had no chance of improving their position, they might want to go for something more of a laugh. Something along the lines of the Terminator’s line, “I’ll be back.” Come to think of it, I wonder if the writers of that movie got the idea from MacArthur. Seems plausible.
Arnold also says that line in fur non Terminator movies- my favorite being when he says, “I’ll be back” in Running Man, Richard Dawson replies, “Only in reruns”
After about 23 seconds of Think it came to me (sorta), as I guessed “I Will Return,” but that wouldn’t be acceptable as there’s only 1 correct response to this one.