ABC has named Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Hartman as the next lead of The Bachelor. The network announced the casting on Friday on Good Morning America, with the milestone 30th season set to premiere on March 21, 2027.
Hartman, 27, is on the Commanders’ practice squad after signing as an undrafted free agent in 2024. He played college football at Wake Forest and Notre Dame, where he set Atlantic Coast Conference records including the most career touchdown passes.
“I’m excited but also very nervous,” Hartman said on Good Morning America. “I have a tough time holding conversation with one girl. Thirty is going to be pretty tough.”
ABC described the quarterback as “ready to find his forever teammate” in its announcement. Hartman said he first answered “no way” when producers approached him, and credited a talk with former quarterback and season 5 Bachelor Jesse Palmer, who now hosts the show, with changing his mind.
The new season will be the first in the franchise since Grant Ellis’s season ended in March 2025, and the first to film at the Bachelor Mansion after its renovation. It airs at 8 p.m. ET on ABC, with episodes streaming the next day on Hulu.
This is not Hartman’s first time on reality television. In 2018 he was one of three high school quarterbacks featured in season two of the Netflix docuseries QB1: Beyond the Lights.
Source: USA Today
