‘Jeopardy!’: 6 Things To Know About Champ Ryan Manton

Darian Lusk October 4, 2024, 12:13 pm

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Ryan Manton is the latest contestant to blaze a trail on Jeopardy!, and fans may want to be clued in on his personal life. The systems administrator from Columbus, Ohio first arrived on Monday, October 4’s episode. The four-day winner with $83,179 total now boasts the longest winning streak of Season 41. As he attempts to sweep the week on Friday’s episode, here’s everything to know about Manton, whose digital footprint paints a picture of a down-to-earth guy who loves helping others, trivia, and of course, his wife Lauren Menke.

His Wife Was on the Show

Manton is not shy in gushing over his wife, Lauren, using his runaway victories to write her a shout-out as his Final Jeopardy answer (“I love you Lauren,” or “I still love you, Lauren.”).

During his first game, host Ken Jennings asked him to tell the story of how he proposed to his wife, and the answer (not in the form of a question) has to do with Jeopardy!.

“My now wife, Lauren—my girlfriend at the time—was on Jeopardy! about three years ago,” Manton shared, telling Jennings, “She was on your last guest hosting episode.” He popped the question to her the night before her episode taped.

Lauren was the February 19, 2021 episode, in Season 37. She came in third place, losing to Sam Stapleton who’d become a two-day champ and return for last season’s strike-based Wildcard tournaments. But she won at love!

They’re Trivia Teammates

Manton shared during another win that he brings gag prizes to pub quiz events based on one of the previous week’s questions. What he didn’t share is Lauren is actually on his trivia team.

Their trivia team is titled “Glam Ghosts” and they’ve made thousands of dollars from trivia, including at the annual event SporcleCon. Manton described his trivia hustle in a feature about him in an employee profile for his company’s website.

“Recently, a trivia team I am on won the Columbus championship and a $1000 prize, a state semi-final game for $500, and an invitation to the state championship. Next April, we’ll be heading to Las Vegas for the Nationals.” He presciently added: “Hopefully one day I’ll be good enough to get my butt kicked on Jeopardy! too.”

‘Friendly Neighborhood IT Guy’

Manton explained what he does for work in the employee profile. He works for a housing service company called Homeport Ohio, which is making a difference in the greater Central Ohio area.

He describes himself as: “Your friendly neighborhood IT guy. I help manage the network, servers, printers, phones, workstations, software, security, and even dabble in some facilities work like bathrooms, elevators, heating, and cooling systems.”

“I love working with so many people that are passionate about making a difference in their community. Coming to Homeport everyday knowing that the work I do helps to improve people’s lives is a reward unlike any other.”

Homeport’s company’s mission statement describes: “Expand household equity for Black people, people of color, and low- and moderate-income buyers through for-sale home development and homebuyer services.” Homeport also “Generate[s] affordable housing options for Central Ohio residents” and “Maintain[s] housing stability through targeted resident services.”

He’s a Regular Blood Donor

When asked in his employee profile (see below) what he’s most proud of, Manton shared it’s being a regular blood donor.

“It’s not much, but I’m up to four gallons of blood donated through the American Red Cross and even volunteered with them for some time. Each pint from a single donation can save up to three lives. If you haven’t thought about donating, look for a local drive near you and give it a try.”

He Loves All Things Central Ohio

Ryan grew up in Akron, Ohio, and loves his home base of Columbus, Ohio as well as traveling the globe with Lauren.

He writes: “Spending time with my girlfriend Lauren. We’re addicted to Jeopardy! and bar trivia. You’ll find us at Endeavor Brewing in Grandview every Tuesday. We enjoy biking around town, eating terrible food, and watching movies together (and we’re proud Gateway Film Center members!)”

Manton loves sports, as he’s also shared on the show, and incorporated his sporty side into a recent trip to Iceland.

“In addition to traveling for sports, I like to get out and experience the world. I recently took a trip to New Orleans for some great Cajun food and jazz music, and even left the country for my favorite trip of all – Iceland. Taking a road trip around Iceland and seeing some of the most beautiful sights on the planet is easily my most memorable vacation. We even got to see Iceland claim their first point in World Cup history watching from a brewery in the eastern fjords!”

Manton also shared that his “personal heroes” are his four parents (his, and his wife’s).

**He Could Pull Off a Rare Jeopardy! Move**

Manton is not messing around when it comes to Jeopardy!. Three out of his four wins have been runaways and he’s gone 92 correct, nine incorrect on clues overall.

As one Redditor put it, sweeping the week by winning Friday’s episode would not only make him a five-day champ, but put him in rarified air as far as recent champs go: “Congrats to Ryan on win #4! Knock on wood, but if he can win tomorrow, he’ll not only make it to 5 wins, but he’ll have done it in a single tape day. That’s like running a marathon,” they wrote.

Four victories (and hopefully counting!) still gives Ryan the longest winning streak of Season 41 so far, which began in September, and all but guarantees he’ll be in the 2025 Tournament of Champions. We’ll see how far he goes until then!

Jeopardy!, Weekdays, check local listings