ESPN analyst Mina Kimes has proven she's more than just a football expert—she's a Jeopardy! champion with a mind for strategy. In a recent semifinal of Celebrity Jeopardy!, Kimes pulled off a stunning victory despite getting the Final Jeopardy question wrong. How? By betting smart, not hard.
Kimes took to social media to break down her approach, which hinged on a classic game theory move: assume the leader will stumble. "I was able to win last night on the Celebrity Jeopardy! semifinals despite playing a pretty awful game, honestly, including Final Jeopardy. My brain completely glitched," Kimes admitted. "However, I won really because of wagering strategies."
The Final Jeopardy clue asked contestants to identify a virtual assistant named after an ancient library. The correct answer was Alexa, but only Katie Nolan got it right. Kimes guessed Claude, while Lisa Ann Walter went with Babylon. Yet Kimes walked away with the win.
Here's how the math played out: Kimes entered the final round with $8,000 and wagered just $2,210. When she answered wrong, she dropped to $5,790. Walter, in first place with $9,600, bet $7,000—and when she also missed, she fell to $2,600. Nolan, in third with $5,100, bet nothing, leaving Kimes on top.
Kimes explained her reasoning: "Your only chance of winning in second place is if first place is wrong. Otherwise, you're out. So you have to operate from that place. And if you bet nothing, if you're right, you win if they're wrong. If you're both wrong, you still win because they had to bet so much to cover you." She added that second-place contestants should always bet conservatively if they're within two-thirds of the leader's score.
While Kimes's strategy was sound, it wasn't flawless—it didn't account for Nolan. If Nolan had wagered just $700 or more, she would have won. Still, fans and former champions praised Kimes's tactical brilliance. One fan wrote, "Mina nails it here. Many really don't understand how critical wagering strategy is." Another joked that Kimes could be a "Justice League-level threat" if she applied her intellect beyond football.
This isn't the first time Kimes has shown her sharp mind. She's also hosted the Scripps National Spelling Bee, proving she thrives under pressure. And she's not afraid to fire back at critics who underestimate her.
Kimes's victory is a masterclass in using game theory under the bright lights. As more contestants study her approach, we might see a shift in how Jeopardy! is played—where brains beat brawn, and a smart wager can trump a wrong answer.
