Brian Baumgartner looked to his longtime pal Aaron Rodgers for any pointers before he filmed the latest episode of “Celebrity Jeopardy!,” which aired on Wednesday.
But as it turns out, even a pep talk couldn’t give Baumgartner an advantage in the game.
“I play a bit of golf, Ken,” the “Office” alum, 50, told host Ken Jennings. “Well, I played a bunch of golf for a while with Aaron Rodgers, who I called before showing up here to try to get some advice.”
“Clearly with my zero points thus far, I got no help,” he teased. “But yeah, we play a lot of golf together.”
He added, joking: “He had me practicing eight hours a day with a buzzer.”
Brian Baumgartner and Aaron Rodgers back in the day.Getty Images for Entertainment Weekly
Aaron Rodgers and Brian Baumgartner playing golf.Isaac Brekken
Aaron Rodgers and Brian Baumgartner have reportedly been friends for years, with the athlete even attending “The Office” star’s wedding.Isaac Brekken
Brian Baumgartner, Lisa Ann Walter and Timothy Simons.Jeopardy! / Youtube
Rodgers, 39, took first place when he won “Celebrity Jeopardy!” in 2015, beating out “Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’Leary and astronaut Mark Kelly. He donated his $50,000 charity winnings to Midwest Athletes Against Childhood Cancer at the time.
The New York Jets quarterback, who is currently recovering from a season-ending Achilles injury sustained in Week 1, went on to do a 10-day guest host run for the game show, but didn’t make the cut when Mayim Bialik and Ken Jennings were named hosts for the remainder of Season 38.
“I don’t think it would have worked based on scheduling based on the way they want to schedule the show,” Rodgers said on the ‘Pat McAfee Show’ in December 2021. “Obviously, I still wanted to play. You never know what happens in this life, things can come back around, things may not come back around, I may go back on ‘Celebrity Jeopardy!’ one day, you never, never know.”
Baumgartner competed against Abbott Elementary’s Lisa Ann Walter and Veep’s Timothy Simons during Tuesday night’s episode.
Season 2 of ‘Celebrity Jeopardy!’ features a bracket tournament with three round, 27 contestants and a grand prize of $1 million for charity of the celebrity’s choosing.
Brian Baumgartner during Tuesday night’s “Celebrity Jeopardy!” episode.Jeopardy! / Instagram
Walter won to move on to the semifinal round. Despite their loss, Baumgartner and Simons, 45, were given $30,000 each to donate.