By Lauren Young
One 21-year-old college student from Jamesville is now $35,000 richer after winning big on Jeopardy earlier this month, a show he distinctly remembers competing in when he was a child — but in the living room of his St. Lawrence county home with his siblings.
“I’ve been a big fan of the show since I was very young,” said Osman Syed, a senior at New York University Shanghai and a 2013 Manlius Pebble Hill graduate.
He spent the first few years of his life living in Ogdensburg by the Canadian border where his family had a total of “three functional TV channels” on their TV set, one of which aired Jeopardy daily.
“Competing with my siblings to be the first to answer a question is one of the most distinct memories of my childhood,” he said.
From a childhood fan to an adult contestant, Syed’s two-day run on Jeopardy led to a rather profitable win of $35,333 in the episode that aired May 1 — not bad for someone who tried out for the show “more or less on a whim.”
“The online test is easy to take and I had some free time on my hands,” said Syed. “My head has always been full of random and mostly useless knowledge, so I figured the show would be one of the rare chances where I could apply that reservoir of information. I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’’t in part motivated by a desire to redeem myself for my high school Double Down appearance — thankfully Alex [Trebek] didn’t ask any questions about ‘The Vampire Diaries.’”
On the April 30 show, Syed began with an early lead, sweeping the cartoons category and leading ahead by $20,000 into the Final Jeopardy round, finishing with $33,333. On May 1, he led by a few hundred dollars at the beginning of the Final Jeopardy round, but ended up as a runner-up when he, along with the two other contestants, incorrectly guessed Versace after being given this clue in the “Fashion Brands” category: “Translated from Roman numerals, ‘55’ appears in luggage and watch product names from a company founded by this man.”
The answer was Louis Vuitton. Syed wagered $9,000 while second-place contestant, Geoff Brousseau of Colorado, wagered $6,001, ending Syed’s run on the show but adding an extra $2,000 to his bank account — totaling his winnings to $35,333.
“Winning a total of $35,333 is definitely a feeling I haven’t experienced before,” said Syed. “In all honesty, there’s a part of me that wishes I could have progressed farther, but the simple fact of appearing is more than enough to satisfy me. Overall, I found it to be a surreal experience. I never really thought that I’d be on the show, so even making it to the audition was a surprise.”
Syed said his family was “incredibly supportive throughout the whole process,” and “everyone gave him encouragement,” including his mother, brother and one of his sisters who even accompanied him to the show’s taping.
A member of his university’s inaugural class, Syed is studying business and finance and plans to have a career in financial services, with an eye towards international business. He is currently working in New York City.
To his Manlius Pebble Hill classmates, he has a special message: “To my Masterminds teammates at Manlius Pebble Hill: Quickdraw’s not done yet.”
