The Real Reason Clayton Echard Was Chosen As The Next Bachelor

Michelle Young's season of "The Bachelorette" hasn't even aired yet. However, a contestant from her season, Clayton Echard, has already been chosen as the brand new lead of "The Bachelor." Echard works as a sales representative for Stryker Orthopaedics, a company that creates medical technology to help orthopedic specialists, per Parade. He hails from Eureka, Missouri and played college football at the University of Missouri. After college, Echard tried his hand in the NFL.

"After outperforming four other tight ends on a tryout basis with the Seattle Seahawks, I signed on as a free agent," he wrote on his LinkedIn account. "While there, I practiced daily with the team and played in four preseason games. I made it past the first round of cuts, however, I was not able to make the final roster. Nonetheless, it was a unique experience that I was blessed to be a part of."

In addition to his career path, Echard also appears to be a family man and has shared snaps of himself with his family, which includes two brothers, to his social media account. While there is a ton of fan interest in Echard, viewers will likely have to wait to see him debut as "The Bachelor" until early 2022. In the meantime, they can watch him fight for Michelle's heart when her season of "The Bachelorette" premieres on October 19.

With all the amazing choices "The Bachelor" franchise had, some fans were wondering why execs chose Clayton Echard to be their new leading man when fans hadn't even been introduced to him yet. According to Us Weekly, Echard immediately wowed producers and it wasn't long before he was the clear favorite to lead Season 26 of the hit dating series. "Clayton stood out right off the bat," a source told the outlet. "Producers ended up going with him because they believed he was the best fit for the role. They wanted to switch things up and go with someone new and someone who hasn't been in the spotlight yet."

The magazine confirmed that Michelle Young's season of "The Bachelorette" wrapped filming in September, and just days later Echard was spotted filming for the upcoming season of "The Bachelor," despite the fact that ABC has yet to officially announce his casting. The former football player is currently looking for love while filming the show, and execs reportedly wanted to pick someone that fans hadn't seen yet to add a bit of mystery between Echard and his contestants. "The mystery makes it more exciting for the prospective contestants," an insider dished. "The crew found out about it last minute. The decision wasn't even made until about a week prior to filming his intro."

"I'm excited. I'm also very, very nervous, and I'm looking to find my person," Echard told a local news station last month. Meanwhile, Season 26 of "The Bachelor" is likely to air in January.