An overzealous contestant on Wheel of Fortune sent host Ryan Seacrest tumbling after his last-second guess proved correct.
During the bonus round this week, contestant Daniel Thomas was charged with solving an answer in the “Living Things” category. After guessing the letters H, G, D and O, the board read, “G _ _ _ _ E S.”
As the clock wound down with just a second to spare, Thomas studied the board intently before blurting out, “Guppies.”
“Yes! You got it! You did it!” Seacrest confirmed, enthusiastically. But in his excitement, Thomas exuberantly embraced Seacrest, sending the host tumbling to the ground.
Seacrest told Thomas he was “good” as the Pittsburgh native tried to help him up. “Did I make you fall?” he asked.
“Daniel, easy on our host,” Wheel announcer Jim Thornton quipped.
“How did you do that in the last second?” Seacrest asked to which Thomas jokingly asked, “Push you over or solve the puzzle? … It just popped into my head.”
As he continued to apologize, Seacrest assured the winner that he wasn’t hurt. “Don’t worry, I loved it,” Seacrest said with a smile.
Thomas’ right answer netted him an additional $40,000, bringing his prize total to $71,950.
Wheel of Fortune shared a clip of the incident to its YouTube account with Seacrest saying, “Pick me up, throw me over, tackle me, I’m totally fine with it,” alongside longtime co-host Vanna White.
On social media, fans reacted to Thomas’ hilarious win, declaring that his reaction would cement him as an all-time memorable contestant.
“Last second solves are always amazing!” one viewer wrote on YouTube, with another remarking, “I’ve never seen a bonus round puzzle get solved with one second to spare. If he hesitated, that could have made things interesting. But yeah, that was one heck of a solve.”
One watcher offered Seacrest a tip when he encounters another last-minute solve: “Next time hug the guest. Avoid being tossed like a salad!”
“I don’t know which I’m more impressed by, the solve or the tackle lol,” another wrote on Instagram.
“The way you took it like a champ. Thank God, you’re okay!” a second person joked.