What is a showcase for young know-it-alls?; Gonzaga junior competing

She'll take obscure fact for $500, Alex.

Gonzaga University junior Amanda Walker is ready for "Jeopardy."

Walker left Thursday for Raleigh, N.C., to compete in the acclaimed game show's College Championship, which will be taped Saturday and Sunday at the North Carolina State University campus.

"I've been a fan since I was little," said Walker, who is up against 14 other college students. "I'd take a break from homework to watch it here at school. One of my roommates thought it was nerdy."

Walker, who's from East Wenatchee, Wash., tried out for the show in the summer with about 60 other college students. Only six of them made it through the elimination process that involved a written test with 50 questions. Walker said they had eight seconds to answer each question.

"I've always had an insatiable appetite for little facts and I'll share them with people," she said, adding that she will hear tidbits of information and just remember them. "I like to display my knowledge."

She likes to read trivia books and play games, she said.

Walker said with some humor that she hasn't had anyone get annoyed with her yet for copious fact-sharing, though she has seen some eyes glaze over.

She's particularly fond of historical facts.

"I think history is an especially necessary discipline to love," she said, emphasizing that history is intrinsically linked to other fields such as technology and pop culture. "I pride myself in presidential candidates."

Walker has memorized all of the nation's 43 presidents and she is now trying to learn the vice presidents, she said.

"I like the looks of amazement I get from people," Walker said.

Some areas do stump her, such as classic art and physics.

"Categories have come up and I have groaned," she said. She also said she needed to get up to date with recent developments in the world of R&B and rap.

"A rap album title came up in the tryouts and I had no idea," she said.

The journalism major, who has a 3.7 GPA, takes her enthusiasm to class as well. In a history class competition last year where students got candy for giving the right answer, the teacher had to tell Walker that she couldn't respond to any more questions, she said.

To prepare for the championships, Walker enlisted the help of friends from different majors to tap their brains for new knowledge and held mock "Jeopardy" sessions, which she admits she didn't always win.

Walker even borrowed buzzers from Gonzaga's College Bowl team, of which she's a member, so she could give her thumbs some practice.

"Amanda is one of those people who know a little bit of everything," said Nathan Murphy, a College Bowl teammate who helped Walker out. "You never know when she'll come up with an answer out of nowhere."

Murphy, who updated Walker on college mascots, said it will be really exciting to watch her on the show and if she wins it'll be an added bonus for the team - members will get to boast about the "Jeopardy" champion in their ranks.

"We think there's an intimidation factor there," he said.

"Jeopardy," which was once referred to as the "SAT of television game shows," draws an estimated 12 million viewers, according to its Web site. The College Championships will be aired between Nov. 7 and 18. In the first round, the 15 competitors will compete in five matches; the winners of those matches will proceed to the semifinals along with the next four competitors who earned the most money. The second round's three winners then enter a two-game final match.

This year's College Champion will take home $100,000; the runner- up and third-place winners get a minimum of $50,000 and $25,000, respectively.

SIDEBAR: ON TV The Jeopardy College Championships will be aired between Nov. 7 and 18.

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