Texas A&M Coach Tanica Jamison to Compete on Wheel of Fortune

Photo Courtesy: Andy Ringgold/Aringo Photos

On Thursday, March 9, swimming fans will see a familiar face on the syndicated television show “Wheel of Fortune” as Tanica Jamison, the associate head coach for the Texas A&M women’s team, will compete.

Jamison explained in an email that she tried out when she encountered the Wheel Mobile bus by chance and was eager to try out after spending time watching the show with her sisters and her grandmother when she was younger.

“My grandmother ‘Nana’ loved doing puzzles, word searches, crosswords and would watch Wheel of Fortune every night. This sparked a love for word searches, puzzles and watching Wheel of Fortune in my twin sister and me, and we still play word games every day against each other,” Jamison wrote.

Jamison says she felt her grandmother’s presence as she was auditioning to be on the show.

“True story, as I waited in line to turn in my application for the Wheel Mobile, a large monarch butterfly landed on my shoe and stayed there for quite some time, enough time that another contestant mentioned that represented a loved one.

“I saw monarch butterflies right before I received an email for the second tryout phase and again before I received my congratulation letter confirming my spot on the show.”

After that but before she taped her episode, Jamison got a tattoo of a monarch butterfly on her wrist so that her Nana could in a sense be with her on the show.

As for the high-stress environment of the show, Jamison had plenty of experience with that from her days as a swimmer (Jamison swam at Texas from 1999 until 2003).

“My experience on the show was nerve wracking to say the least. Swimming helped with calming my nerves and being able to speak and perform under the big lights. This is a memory that I will always cherish!”

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