‘Jeopardy!’ and ‘Wheel of Fortune’ won’t air on 6ABC Friday due to the NFL Draft
I’ll take annoyed Philadelphia viewers for $400.
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There are bound to be a lot of upset trivia fans in Philadelphia and across the Delaware Valley Friday night.
Jeopardy! champ Mattea Roach won again Thursday, bringing her 18-game cash winnings to $438,183. But fans following the 23-year-old’s historic run as the show’s most successful Canadian player will have to stay up into the wee hours to see if the Toronto tutor extends her winning streak to 19 games.
Because ABC is airing the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft on Friday starting at 7 p.m., Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune will be preempted. Instead, Jeopardy! is scheduled to air at 1:35 a.m. Saturday, following Nightline. Wheel of Fortune is scheduled to follow at 2 a.m.
According to 6ABC, if your DVR is already set up, it will automatically record either show. But across the Delaware Valley, there will be a lot of disappointed gameshow fans, considering the popularity of both programs.
This month (and pretty much any month), Jeopardy! is the second-most-watched show in the Philadelphia market, slightly behind ABC World News Tonight. In fact, more people tune in on an average night in Philadelphia to watch Jeopardy! then watch Phillies or Sixers games on NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Over the past month, Jeopardy! averaged an 8.6 household rating in the Philadelphia market (about 268,000 households per episode). Wheel of Fortune — hosted in syndication by Pat Sajak and Vanna White since 1983 — isn’t far behind with a 5.9 household rating (about 183,000 households).
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Jeopardy!’s ratings have gotten a slight bump from Roach’s winning streak, currently the show’s eighth-longest. She also moved into sixth place Thursday for the highest winnings during regular-season play, earned a spot in the Tournament of Champions, and is referred to as the youngest super champ in Jeopardy! history.
“I don’t even know how to process how much this has changed my life,” Mattea said in an interview shared on Jeopardy’s website. “Knowing that I’ve won this much money, like, I’m literally thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, can I buy a house like ten years sooner than I thought?’”
Jeopardy! is in its 38th season of syndication, with hosting duties split between former champion Ken Jennings and actress Mayim Bialik. The current season is scheduled to end July 29.