10. Buzzy Cohen
Time Frame: May 17-May 28
Best Known For: Former Jeopardy! Champion
There are a lot of reasons that Buzzy Cohen as a Jeopardy! host makes sense. For starters, he is among the show’s most recognized winners, known for his eccentric personality and impeccable fashion sense. In the various specials that have aired since his run, he has had such strong chemistry with everyone, even managing to form a comedic feud with Ken Jennings. As far as winners go, Cohen was the epitome of what the show could achieve, and unfortunately what was sorely missing from this guest host run. There should’ve been more contestants-turned-hosts that fans recognized. Maybe James Holzhauer? Brad Rutter? Austin Rogers?
Whereas Jennings kicked off this experiment with strong confidence, the same couldn’t be said for Cohen. There’s nothing to suggest that he was a bad host, but he was clearly a bigger fan. With a bubbly personality, he seemed way too eager, constantly espousing optimism in ways that serviced a Tournament of Champions run, but feels like it could grow tiresome. He did an effective job, but so much of his personality was more reactive. He was a bit too thrilled when contestants got a question right or wrong. He didn’t have the professional composure, and that’s both what makes him endearing and a bit hit and miss.
With that said, there’s something to be said for how former Jeopardy! contestants treated the hosting job compared to the journalists. Whereas journalists had a structured style that rarely veered from the familiar, the contestants went for something more reverential and formless. To Cohen, Jennings, and Aaron Rodgers’ credit, they each made the show into something symbolic of their own personal interest in the show. Cohen is arguably one of the bolder takes and one that could’ve used two or three other champions to compare to. Instead, it’s just a strangely endearing yet slightly off run that was unlike anything else this season.
9. Savannah Guthrie
Time Frame: June 14-June 25
Best Known For: NBC News/TODAY
By this point in Jeopardy!’s season, there had been enough journalist hosts that it was becoming difficult to tell them apart. Even with big personalities, the task of determining who read questions better proved to be difficult. They were merely doing some form of their job and presenting information in a way that didn’t challenge them. As a result, most of them failed to make lasting impressions, or at least reveal that putting journalists in time pressured situations didn’t always produce the best banter with the contestants.
Among those who fit right near the middle of the pack is Savannah Guthrie. Over the course of her run, she did plenty to keep spirits high as she brought a cheerful demeanor to the program. While she did little to stand out with endearing tidbits or moments that fans will look back fondly on, she did enough to keep the show moving, keeping competition lively and encouraging them when it was necessary. As far as hosts go, one can do a lot worse than Guthrie.
While it may have not been the best run, it was a decent use of a gatekeeper, managing to not challenge the norms of the show and embrace its friendly atmosphere. She clearly had a passion for the series, reverently following the rules and eloquently presenting the answers in a manner that made her compelling to watch. She didn’t do enough to stand out, though she also did enough to not make the show about her. It was about the spirit of the game, and with a smile and upbeat tone, she did her best to make every episode good and did a pretty good job doing so.
8. Bill Whitaker
Time Frame: May 3-May 14
Best Known For: 60 Minutes
Even among the Jeopardy! hosts, Bill Whitaker was strangely low energy. It could be that his time on 60 Minutes makes him more of a relaxed and soft-spoken personality. He was at times too relaxed to fit the high speed nature of the game, and yet there was something charming about it. If the show ever reached a syndication deal where it airs secondary episodes in the early afternoon, Whitaker would fit nicely. For what he lacks in urgency, he more than makes up for with passion and heart, able to make every contestant feel comfortable during the most pressurized of moments.
Another reason that Whitaker stands out is that he’s easily among the best interviewers of this group. It could be the 60 Minutes training that’s drawn from human interest pieces, but he knows when to lean in and step back during the interview segment. He guides the contestants through their answers with a selflessness that is downright charming. Like the best of hosts, he knew that the show was about fulfilling the contestants’ dreams of competing on this quiz show institution, and makes it feel completely worthwhile.
It would be easy to knock him for being a tad dull and lacking the flair of his contemporaries, but his consistency is impeccable. He has so much compassion for the game and those on it that shines through. With clear line deliveries, he managed to at times hypnotize people by making something so relaxed feel intense. Most of all, he just knew how to be a professional who not only did the job but knew how to make everyone feel like they belonged there, eager to be heard and share their own stories with the world. For as much as he isn’t my favorite, he is definitely a great wild card.
7. Joe Buck
Time Frame: Fox Sportscaster
Best Known For: August 9-August 13
In some respects, Joe Buck had the worst schedule this season. Given that people were still talking about LeVar Burton two weeks later and the imminent news of Mike Richards and Mayim Bialik stepping up as hosts, it felt like nobody cared that there were still new episodes on. For the last time, there would be somebody random in the host chair, trying to make their mark and live out the dream of hosting. Given that Buck followed the unenthusiastic pick of David Faber, things were at a decent low, likely to stay that way until any reruns featuring Alex Trebek showed up. Given that Buck was also a sports journalist, it felt again like beating a dead horse and one that many assumed should’ve gone to Burton anyway.
What makes Buck rank so high is that he’s that last boost of energy. His early episodes may have felt a bit off, featuring him being too aggressive and shouting, but by the end, there was a chemistry to how he did things. Without making it about himself, he brought humor and excitement to the show, making everyone feel like they’d have a great time. His assertiveness may have been jarring compared to others, but he left behind a performance that was needed during the sleep days of August when absolutely nobody seemed to care that Matt Amodio was about to become Jeopardy! royalty and the show was finally going to start reshaping itself more permanently.
Again, it helped to have Amodio alongside Buck’s performance because together they formed enough chemistry to play like sitcom characters. It’s an approach reminiscent of the days of Trebek and maybe James Holzhauer. It was a bonding that made the show endearing to watch, making audiences eager to see just how far this man would go. Whereas it was initially seen as a novelty, Amodio came to be his own boost of energy for the upcoming season. With Buck cheering him on, the show felt the most familiar it had in months, where everyone’s there to have a good time and see how far the contestants can take things. Luckily, Buck had a great sense of humor about it and made the brief run a memorable one, to say the least.
6. Sanjay Gupta
Time Frame: June 28-July 9
Best Known For: CNN Chief Medical Correspondent
As the list inches closer to The Top 5, the hosts begin to reflect better what it would take to make Jeopardy! into their own beast. There is something that they bring that reflects the core principles of the series in fascinating ways. Among those who left the best impression was Sanjay Gupta, who managed to be one of the most well-spoken and well-liked hosts during this entire run. As someone familiar with delivering facts in clear and eloquent manners, he managed to make an engaging run into something special. He never overstepped his boundaries, allowing the contestants to shine and the outright nerdiness to take front and center.
He was the perfect balance of professionalism and casualness. There was an investment in every component of the show, even with cheerful introductions that allowed everyone to feel comfortable preparing for the game ahead. He didn’t go too fast, instead allowing every detail to shine, controlling the pace of the show. He had his intensity but managed to balance them with humane moments. The show was warm and alive while he was hosting, and reflected an interesting direction for the show to move forward in.
From here on out, the hosts are all singular in their achievements. Not only have they recognized what made the show special, to begin with, but they present alternative versions of the show that could excel. Maybe they wouldn’t be exactly like Alex Trebek, but there’s still hope that they would mold something cohesive, able to flow nicely from answer to answer, allowing the contestants to never feel too stressed from pressure. Gupta was a major one, if just because of how interested he was in every moment of the show, eager to explore just what makes all of us want to reach for the buzzer.
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