On April 22nd, Disney announced at Hulu’s Get Real House event in Los Angeles that The Golden Bachelor is returning for a second season. Fans of Bachelor Nation were thrilled by the news, especially after the franchise’s first-ever Golden Bachelor, Gerry Turner, ended his short-lived marriage to contestant Theresa Nist in divorce.
So, who is the new senior citizen preparing to open up his heart again to find the one? Meet Mel Owens, a 66-year-old lawyer and retired NFL player, who was just announced as Season 2’s Golden Bachelor. While Mel’s contestants are not yet known, there is plenty to learn about the former professional athlete and his life before reality TV fame.
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Everything We Know About The Golden Bachelor Season 2’s Mel Owens
Mel Owens Was Not A Contestant On Joan Vassos’ Season Of The Golden Bachelorette
Bachelor Nation fans are getting a second season of The Golden Bachelor. Mel Owens, a 66-year-old retired NFL linebacker, has been announced as the newest Golden lead in the hit spin-off series, and there’s plenty to learn about him before he starts handing out those golden roses.
According to ABC, Mel hails from Detroit, Michigan and attended the University of Michigan, where he was later drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the 1981 NFL Draft. A more in-depth history of his NFL career, per Pro Football Reference, highlights that Mel was born on December 7, 1958, and was drafted by the Rams in the first round (9th overall) in the NFL draft as a linebacker. His career with the team spanned 9 seasons, playing in 122 games. He last played professionally with the Rams in 1989 and never played for another NFL team.
During his 9 seasons with the LA Rams, he totaled 453 tackles, 26.5 sacks, nine fumble recoveries, and four interceptions.
After Mel retired from the NFL, he moved to California and went back to school to pursue a law degree. He attended the University of California, Hastings College of Law. Mel has been working as a lawyer representing “professional athletes navigating workers’ compensation issues” at the NBO Law in Laguna Hills, California, of which he is a founding partner, per Lehigh Valley Live.
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Does Mel Owens Have Children?
Mel Called His Ex-Wife His “First Love”
Interestingly, the Bachelor franchise decided not to choose one of Joan Vassos’ contestants from The Golden Bachelorette to be the new lead. Normally, a former contestant would get the opportunity to find love again as a lead. However, it looks like they made a great choice in Mel, whose bio notes that he is searching for “companionship” and a second chance at love.
“It was during this time that he met his first love, and together they had two sons. While life took an unexpected turn with the passing of his father and the end of his marriage, Owens channeled his energy into being the best father he could be, focusing on raising his sons and coaching their extracurricular sports teams.”
“Now, after several years as a devoted dad, Owens is ready to rediscover a love rooted in the simple joys of companionship – sharing life’s everyday moments, making plans for the future, and growing stronger together as a couple. As the Golden Bachelor, he’s eager to meet someone who shares this vision and finally find that perfect teammate he’s been waiting for in his golden years.”
As his bio states, Mel has two children from his first marriage. In an interview with Us Weekly, Bachelor host Jesse Palmer shared that Mel’s children are “getting ready to go off to college” and have a close relationship with their father. It’s also been discovered that Mel’s first marriage was to a woman named Fabiana Pimentel for 25 years. She divorced Mel in early 2020.
Unlike both Golden’s first-ever leads, Gerry and Joan, Mel is not widowed. It’s unclear whether he was in any serious relationships in the past five years. However, it seems clear that he is ready to move away from his divorce and find someone to spend the rest of his life with.
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When Does The Golden Bachelor Season 2 Air?
What Can Fans Expect On Mel Owen’s Golden Season?
Jesse Palmer shared his excitement about announcing Mel as the Season 2 lead. In the aforementioned Us Weekly interview, he said, “Mel is obviously super handsome. He’s very charming, he’s very intelligent, he’s very successful.” He added, “He had this incredible pro football career and transitioned into becoming a successful warrior. I think while he’s had a lot of success professionally, there have been some hills and valleys in his personal life.”
Jesse also gave some insight into what viewers can expect as they watch Mel on his journey to find love again. According to Jesse, Mel is hoping to find someone to share “simple everyday moments” with. The show is also expected to acknowledge the “tragic passing” of Mel’s father, a moment Jesse described as especially emotional. In addition, Mel will likely open up about his divorce from his first wife and how they continue to co-parent their two sons.
“The tragic passing of his father, he went through a divorce —I think oftentimes you find out about somebody’s character when they go through tough, difficult times and it shifted all his focus and attention to raising his two boys. He really became this devoted father, he put so much energy into them,” Jesse told the outlet.
“He’s just looking for companionship. It’s just really pure and just listening to him talk about it is really moving. So I think he’s going to be a great lead. I think he’s a great choice to be our next Golden Bachelor.”
Not much else is known about what to expect on The Golden Bachelor Season 2, but fans are hoping for a better outcome for Mel after Gerry and Theresa’s heartbreaking divorce after just three months of marriage. It’s most likely that the reality TV show will air sometime in the fall.
In the meantime, fans can tune into Season 10 of Bachelor in Paradise, which will return sometime this summer. So far, only five contestants have been named: Golden Bachelor’s Leslie Fhima, Golden Bachelorette’s Gary Levingston, Bachelorette Season 21’s Jonathan Johnson and Hakeem Moulton, and Bachelor Season 29’s Zoe McGrady. The season will also move from Mexico to Costa Rica. In addition, Wells Adams returns as bartender and Bachelorette’s Season 15 Hannah Brown will also join the contestants on the beach.
