Colton Has Won The Hearts Of Twitter On The 'Bachelorette' Premiere

It is finally time for Becca to do the damn thing (sorry) and go on her Bachelorette journey. On Monday's premiere, Becca and viewers met all her suitors, one of them being Colton. Who is Colton on The Bachelorette? He's been on the screen a grand total of maybe five minutes and already he's caught fans' hearts (on Twitter, at least).

Colton Underwood is a former professional football player from Denver, Colorado. Not only was he born on Super Bowl Sunday, but according to his ABC biography he was named after the Indianapolis Colts — so it was fair to say that his future was in football from the start. He played for three teams, the San Diego Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles and Oakland Raiders; he was only on the preseason teams and practice squad. Unfortunately, Colton's career was cut short before he made a final roster: he left professional football due to an injury. During his introduction package on The Bachelorette, Colton said that if he continued playing he may have become partially paralyzed.

Colton has made the most of his early NFL retirement, though. He directs a charity focused on people with cystic fibrosis called the Legacy Foundation. According to the PJ Star, he's also the co-owner Fourth and Goal Grill in Washington with his dad.

In addition to raising awareness, support and research for cystic fibrosis, the Legacy Foundation also encourages young athletes and sponsors youth football camps. The restaurant he co-owns even hosts fundraising events. "Not just the money, but the awareness," Colton told the PJ Star.

Colton's introduction video also touched upon his charity work. What it didn't go over, however, was Colton's dating history. Usually, I don't really care about contestants' past unless it's something particularly alarming or juicy, and his falls in the latter category. Colton dated Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman after shooting his shot in a Q&A and asking her out. The two dated for six months but unfortunately broke up in August of 2017 (or perhaps not so unfortunately, as now Colton and Becca may be meant to be).

"We’re taking a break right now," Colton told the PJ Star about he and Aly's breakup. "We’re still good friends and talk, but all that travel had been a nightmare." They were indeed long distance: Colton was in Colorado while Aly was in Massachusetts. They went to some high profile events — like the Golden Globes — together. When discussing the split, Colton seemed to be on good terms with Aly. "It put a lot of pressure on us, sure, but we had fun with it. A lot of fun date nights," he said. "Those six months were great."

That easygoing attitude may go a long way on a show like The Bachelorette, where his "girlfriend" will also be dating 20-something other men. It's only premiere night, but Colton instantly made a good impression on fans. It probably had something to do with his intro video, which included adorable footage of him helping out children... and also the fact that other men in the competition don't seem to know what they're doing (i.e., the man who showed up in a chicken suit). Regardless, fans on Twitter made their love known:

Of course, this is week one — so it's a bit early to be calling Colton the winner at this point. Hopefully, though, his intro video and adorable appearances bode well for him to be on the show for at least the next few weeks. For now, viewers can fall for him in real time (well, almost in real time) like Becca.