New Golden Bachelor's Comments On Age Draw Backlash

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There's a new golden bachelor in town, but I'm not sure if he will be as polished as previous gentlemen in his position.
In season 2 of The Golden Bachelor, the lucky leading man is Mel Owens, a 66-year-old former NFL player who was a linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams.
Before that, he played college football for the University of Michigan Wolverines, and let me tell you, it's pretty obvious because he's got the problematic locker room talk down pat.
On a June 10 episode of the Michigan football podcast MGoBlue Podcasts With Jon Jansen, Mel revealed what he's looking for in the bachelorettes for the upcoming season premiere. He said during the casting process, the producers asked him," 'What's your preferences?' so I just said, '45 to 60,' just being honest."
After Mel was chosen, he claimed he had lunch with the executive producer and told him, "If they're 60 or over, I'm cutting them.
He said the producer told him, "Oh, man you can't—this is not The Silver Bachelor, this is The Golden Bachelor. But they're going to be hot, don't worry about it, don't worry about it,'" while also explaining he "'can't use the word cut.'"
According to the series website, the executive producers of The Golden Bachelor are Claire Freeland, Jason Ehrlich, Bennett Graebner, and Andrew Frank.
Mel said the explained cut is "an NFL term."
But he didn't stop there. Elaborating on his age parameters, like he's recruiting a high school senior quarterback, he said, "They've got to be fit, because I stay in shape and work out and stuff. And I told them to try to stay away from the artificial hips and the wigs. That kind of stuff."
When the podcast host asked what he was looking for, Mel added that he was looking for someone who's "a lifetime learner" and "enjoys life, and workouts, stays fit, eat and have fun," and "be energetic."
Unfortunately, Mel's comments are going viral, and the reactions on the r/thebachelor Reddit thread show that people are not too pleased.
One user wrote, "i already hate this man with a burning passion, and not in a way that makes me want to watch him on TV. This is why I don't mess with The Bachelor anymore."
Someone else said, "Honestly I'm side-eyeing the exec producer the most - he told you these things and you still decided to move forward with him?"
"The wigs and artificial hips comment is actually cruel and deranged. Nobody wants their hair to thin or to have a hip replacement but it happens. How horrible to say a woman isn't worthy of him because of it. He's gross. I'm definitely not watching, unless only women who want to tell him off apply for the sole purpose of doing so on-air," another user wrote.
This person wrote, "Locking in my prediction now: he's going to pick one of the youngest women on his season, dump her within six months, and by this time next year he'll be going to Bachelor hangouts and flirting with the 20-somethings.
"Ew, really? Men who can't appreciate women their own age and demand younger women are gross. I'm so grateful my husband only seems to find me more attractive as I age! And why shouldn't he? He's aging too, something these men all to often forget 🤦🏻‍♀️," another person said.
This Redditor said, "Listing his range as 45-60 is so weird. I'm turning 44 this summer, and I can't imagine being with a man 20+ years older than me. Even if he is "fit." This guy needs to be humbled."
"Why in the world did they pick someone so unlikeable? They ruined everything that people liked about the first season," another Redditor wrote.
And finally, someone hilarious asked, "have men ever considered literally just shutting the fuck up?"
The general consensus is there's a red flag on the play for the former NFL linebacker. What are your thoughts about the new Golden Bachelor? Let's huddle in the comments.