
Before the beach Andrew SpencerAnd Teddi Wright couldn’t stop gushing about each other before Bachelor in Paradise.
The Bachelor Nation debut was made by the pro football player during Katie Thurston‘s season of The BacheloretteIn 2021, the surgical unit nurse first appeared on Clayton Echard‘s season of The BachelorThis was earlier in the year.
Though the duo didn’t meet in person ahead of Bachelor in ParadiseThey filmed in summer 2022 and sparked dating rumors as soon as March. The speculation began in part after Andrew’s cousin Clay HarborWhile watching Teddi, Teddi was tweeted aboutThe BachelorJanuary
“Sooo Teddy [sic] I have this cousin,” wrote the former NFL player, who appeared on Becca Kufrin‘s season ofThe Bachelorette2018 and season 6 Bachelor in ParadiseThe next year.
Teddi was a front-runner in her era. The Bachelor, receiving Clayton’s first impression rose in the season premiere, but their relationship fizzled out before hometowns. “I was not expecting that tonight,” the California native said in a confessional interview after elimination, admitting that she thought she might be The One for Clayton. “It sounded like it was me from our last conversation. … I do want to be someone’s first choice, and I deserve that.”
Andrew, for his part, finished Katie’s season in fifth place. The former bank marketing manager eliminated the Austria native ahead of hometowns, then asked him to come back after he left her a note telling her he’d be waiting if she changed her mind.
Andrew refused to return to Katie when she asked him. “I want my future wife to choose me,” he told the cameras.
The Bachelorette alum later told Us Weekly that he didn’t regret leaving, but it was still hard to say goodbye to Katie. “I didn’t expect her to be sprinting down the stairs, like a rom-com and completely suck the wind out of my lungs, making my heart sink,” he said in July 2021. “Definitely a moment I’ll cherish forever. Moments that take your breath away are what I love the most. And that was definitely one of those moments.”
Katie, for her part, admitted that Andrew’s exit was “really tough” for her. “There was a part of me that wanted him to stay,” she told UseIn July 2021. “And maybe if hometowns weren’t so soon, I would have just made that happen. But with the hometowns coming up, I just knew ultimately it wasn’t the best decision for both him and I.”
Season 8 Bachelor in ParadisePremieres on ABC Tuesday, September 27th, at 8 p.m. ET.
Continue scrolling to see everything Andrew and Teddi have to say about each other. Bachelor in Paradise.