Former Vanderbilt quarterback Jordan Rodgers won Season 12 of the ABC reality show The Bachelorette on Monday.
Rodgers, 27, received the final rose over Robby Hayes on the season finale from JoJo Fletcher. He appeared in games for Vanderbilt in 2011 and 2012, playing in two bowl games including a win in the 2012 Music City Bowl. He is the brother of Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
He took over the starting job from Larry Smith during the 2011 season and led the Commodores to their fifth bowl appearance in Vanderbilt history, losing 31-24 to the Cincinnati Bearcats. He was named co-captain in 2012, started all 12 games and was the first quarterback in Vanderbilt history to lead the Commodores to back-to-back bowl appearances. They beat the NC State Wolfpack 38-24 in the Music City Bowl to end the season. He had 191 completions, 2,539 yards and 15 touchdowns that season, placing him in the top 10 all time at Vanderbilt in those categories.
He was named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll three times and was on the 2012 Unitas Award Watch List.
Following his career with Vanderbilt, he tried to make it in the NFL, signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars out of college. He signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Miami Dolphins before trying out for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League.
The Bachelorette was not Rodgers’ first appearance on screen. He made a cameo appearance with member of the Packers in the hit film Pitch Perfect 2.
Rodgers was chosen amongst 26 men for Fletcher’s final rose.
His relationship with his brother, Aaron, was a tense subject on the show.
“I haven’t seen the show, to be honest with you, so it hasn’t really affected me a whole lot,” Aaron told WISN 12 News in Wisconsin. “As far as those kinds of things go, I’ve always found that it’s a little inappropriate to talk publicly about some family matters, so I’m just — I’m not going to speak on those things, but I wish him well in the competition.”
A native of Chico, California, Rodgers started his collegiate career at Butte Junior College, leading them to a 12-0 record and an outright junior college national championship. He transferred to Vanderbilt in 2010 but was redshirted while dealing with a shoulder injury for most of the season.
