Here’s Why ‘Jeopardy!’ Champion Matt Amodio Won’t Be On Your TV For A While

Matt Amodio’s run on Jeopardy! already has him chasing some very notable show history, and now he’s in another time-honored tradition for a streaking champion: waiting out the break between seasons as the reigning champ. The PhD candidate has scorched his way through Jeopardy! to the point where he’s outlasted several guest hosts and the announcement of two full-time hosts to replace the late Alex Trebek.

Amid that he’s dominated the game as a contestant, cruising past the $500,000 mark in winnings to be the third highest winner in show regular season history. Not to mention annoying many viewers with a straightforward answering style that often makes no grammatical sense. It’s working, though, to the tune of 18 games won and $574,801 in winnings.

But Monday’s Jeopardy! is an episode that originally aired on October 14, 2004 and featured a different streaker: Jeopardy! GOAT Ken Jennings in the middle of his record 74-game winning streak. That’s because Season 37 of Jeopardy! is over, and the show is now on a month-long run of repeats until regular play continues in mid-September.

That may be a bummer for those who want to see how far Amodio can go, but it’s also a good opportunity to see Trebek back in action in syndication. The show announced last week that the set of episodes celebrating Trebek’s travels over the years will also return during this stretch, so you can watch him at Niagara Falls again if you’d like.

Season 38 of Jeopardy! won’t start airing until September 13, with Mike Richards back behind the podium giving answers to Amodio and two new contestants.