WISCONSIN — A professor of philosophy at St. Norbert College has had a little extra homework himself as of late, as he's won his way through the current "Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions" to make it into the upcoming finals.

"The first player to win three times will be crowned the 'Tournament of Champions' champion," Ben Chan said.

Chan, a nine-game champion, was the first competitor to make it into the finals this year. However, at this stage of the show, don't let the competition aspect of the show fool you; Chan said everyone is pulling for everyone else.

"The big difference is that we all knew of each other before we got there," Chan said. "On a normal episode, you'll just show up and meet 10 new people who are there to film for the week. It's interesting but you start off as strangers. In this case you're with people you've seen on TV, maybe bonded with them and then spend a week in pretty intense competition. We all stay at the same hotel, so we get to know each other pretty well."

The "Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions" finals begin this coming Tuesday.

Watch the full interview above.