‘Jeopardy!’ Champ Mike Dawson Reveals Sad Personal News After Defeat

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Recent Jeopardy! champion Mike Dawson saw his three-day winning streak come to an end on Wednesday night (April 9), and, unfortunately, the bad news didn’t stop there.

Dawson, a 6’7 technology manager from Portland, Oregon, amassed $57,000 across his first three games, but it all came crashing down on Wednesday’s episode. The fan favorite was knocked off the winner’s podium by Andrew Hayes, a law student originally from Tupelo, Mississippi, and finished the episode with just $2.

After the episode aired, Dawson took to the Jeopardy! Reddit forum to share his thoughts on his experience and also revealed some sad news regarding his job status.

“Well, it was fun while it lasted! Big congrats to Andrew for being lightning-fast with the buzzer and extremely strong in a wide variety of topics. Hats off to Courtney [Martin] for being the only one to get a tough Final Jeopardy clue!” Dawson wrote.

He continued, “Getting on Jeopardy was an 18 year journey for me, but in the end, it couldn’t have come at a better time. My occupation for the show was listed as “Technology Manager,” but as Anise [K. Strong-Morse, a fellow contestant] alluded to in her post yesterday, there’s much more to the story than that.”

Dawson explained he’d been “working in tech-focused roles for international nonprofits in the aid and development sector for more than a decade, when just a few weeks before taping, my job and the jobs of thousands of my then-current and former colleagues all disappeared overnight with the elimination of USAID.”

The Jeopardy! contestant was referring to the cuts made by President Donald Trump and Elon Musk‘s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which, in February, ended nearly 10,000 USAID and State Department contracts and grants.

“I’ll forgo getting into the politics of it all, despite the sudden loss of my career being inherently political, but I’m incredibly grateful to have my Jeopardy winnings to help carry me through this transitionary period,” Dawson added.

He concluded his post by writing, “If anyone has any leads on remote opportunities for internationally-focused roles of all kinds and/or managerial roles related to cybersecurity, feel free to reach out! Thanks again to the Jeopardy community for all the support as I finally got to achieve this lifelong dream.”

Fans replied to Dawson’s post with support, with one commenter writing, “Mike, you’re a great player and you seemed so calm during your run and looked like you were having a good time! I think you’re going to do well in Champions Wildcard. Hoping that everything works out for you!”

“I enjoyed your run on Jeopardy and I am distressed at your current position in life. I wish you all the best!” said another.

Another added, “From a Fed currently mired in all this as well, my deepest condolences, and congrats on your spectacular play despite the circumstances. At least you’ll have something great to put on your resume!”

“Wishing you the best of luck! Thank you for all the work you’ve done to make the lives of so many people better,” wrote one commenter.

Former Jeopardy! contestant Josh Weikert added, “Great watching you play, Mike, and I’ll keep my ears open for opportunities. I work in government and my wife and I both have a lot of exposure/networking in international education programs/organizations.”

“Aw im heartbroken for you Mike- you were incredible and so fascinating to watch,” wrote another.