School principal howls like coyote after wild $86K ‘Wheel of Fortune’ win, reveals unusual plans for money
‘Wheel of Fortune’ has brought forth plenty of memorable moments on screen over the years, and one that stood out was from the January 1 episode. Interestingly, it highlighted how fun and animated a school principal can be. The player in question is Dr. Troy Sawyer, the principal at Korte Elementary in Independence, Missouri. He said he had some big plans for his winnings, but what caught everyone's eye was his surprising gesture after winning the game: he howled like a coyote. In the game, Sawyer went against former teacher turned preacher Kanika Douglas, from Dickinson, Texas, and Jillian Thomas from Ambler, Pennsylvania. When the contestants were being introduced, Sawyer even shouted out Korte Elementary, while also doing the school’s signature “howl.”
As per TV Insider, the contestant even told Ryan Seacrest that after his ‘Wheel of Fortune’ audition, he held a 'Game Show Era' theme at his school. In the activity, the staff had presented various game shows to the students, with an aim to increase attendance. As per the contestant, the gaming activity in his school even allowed students to earn raffle tickets to win prizes. Showing brilliant enthusiasm and intelligent guesses, the school principal truly dominated the episode. When he entered the Express Round, he racked up $16,300, as well as a trip to the British Virgin Islands worth $11,500.
The contestant then went on to win the Triple Toss-Up round on the reality game show, guessing all three puzzles correctly. Towards the final puzzle, round four, Sawyer sealed his victory, bringing his earnings to a total of $46,850. As for the other two players, Thomas walked away with $4,350, and Douglas took home only $1,000. Moving into the Bonus Round, the principal picked up Phrase category and also introduced his boyfriend, Paul, and his female best friend, Jordan.
The player then selected C, H, M, and A as the additional letters. On the screen, the Bonus Round puzzle then read, “_ R A C E / _ _ _ R S E L _.” When the ten-second timer started, Sawyer seemed a bit confused at first, but then went on to guess, “Trace Yourself,” an answer which was not correct. The contestant then turned to the host, who has taken over the duties of veteran host Pat Sajak, and gave another guess, “Brace Yourself.” This was the correct answer, and the move earned him another big prize. He said, “I knew the whole time,” also letting out a loud, celebratory howl.
Following his win, Seacrest opened the prize envelope and revealed that the principal had won $40,000, taking his total winnings to a whopping $86,850, plus a trip to the British Virgin Islands. Talking to FOX4 News Kansas City, Sawyer shared how he plans to spend the winning amount. “We want to get a renovated school bus that is renovated into a house and just live there with us and our two little wiener dogs,” the contestant mentioned. He also said that he was looking forward to sharing his learnings from the show with the kids at his school. "They get to see me as Dr. Sawyer all of the time and I am really excited for the first time they get to see Troy and who Troy is in the element of a game show we talk about all the time," he said.
