One Of Wheel Of Fortune Contestants In Failed Puzzle Solve That Went Viral Explains What Happened

One of those Wheel of Fortune contestants explained what happened with that weird failed puzzle solve this week. Christopher Coleman, one of the people feeling the heat on social media, talked to TMZ about how it all went down. The game show contestant says that all of them knew the answer, but the pressure just got to all of them. Coleman specifically referenced how he had heard the phrase “Another Feather In Your Cap” when he was a young person. But, it’s been 30 years since that moment. Perfectly understandable, but still a magnet for jokes on Twitter and Facebook. Game show discussion at home is hardly new. However, some fans watching at home felt like the ridicule went too far. Check out what the contestant had to say down below.

“This is an idiom I’ve learned when I was six or seven years old,” Coleman began. “But, I haven’t heard it in like over 30 years. So, it’s been a while for me since I’ve heard it. And then also realizing you’re under a lot of scrutiny and pressure during production. A lot of people are sitting at home in the comfort of their couch. While we are trying to figure this out.”

“The sad part is that there are people saying that we are not intelligent or trying to belittle our college degrees,” he added. “What I would say to the trolls is, ‘Why aren’t you up there? How come you don’t have public speaking skills? You go on Wheel of Fortune!’ You go sit in the shoes where we were standing and it would be a whole other conversation when they’re trending. Making a donkey of themselves.”

Wheel host Pat Sajak tweeted about the viral moment the next day. “Last night’s “Feather in your cap” puzzle was a case in point. Sitting at home, it seems incredible that they couldn’t solve it, but I knew in real time what was happening,” he began. “The first attempted solve was “Feather in your hat” which, by the way, is how a lot of people say it. So all three players thought it was a good solve, and were stunned when I said it was wrong. Now imagine you’re on national TV, and you’re suddenly thrown a curve and you begin getting worried about looking stupid, and if the feather isn’t in your hat, where the heck can it be? You start flailing away looking for alternatives rather than synonyms for ‘hat.’”

“And, of course, when it’s solved, you want to crawl in a hole. I’ve been praised online for “keeping it together” and not making fun of the players. Truth is, all I want to do is help to get them through it and convince them that those things happen even to very bright people,” the host continued. “But mocking them online and calling them names? These are good people in a bad situation under a kind of stress that you can’t begin to appreciate from the comfort of your couch.”

Do you see where Coleman was coming from? Let us know down in the comments!