Tag: Mel Owens

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Warning: The Golden Bachelor Season 2 spoilers ahead. He’s been one of Bachelor Nation’s most controversial leads, but does Mel get engaged in The Golden Bachelor Season 2 finale? He may have already revealed the answer.

Mel Owens, a 66-year-old lawyer and a retired NFL linebacker from Laguna Hills, California, was announced as the Season 2 Golden Bachelor on April 2025. However, less than two months later, he faced backlash for an interview he gave on the “MGoBlue Podcasts With Jon Jansen,” in which he claimed that the oldest woman he would date on The Golden Bachelor would be 60 years old when the producers asked, “What’s your preferences?” “I just said, ’45 to 60,’ just being honest,” Mel said on the podcast. “‘If they’re 60 or over, I’m cutting them.’” The producer told him, “This is not The Silver Bachelor, this is The Golden Bachelor.”

Related: Which Bachelor couples who are still together may surprise you

After facing backlash from his interview, Mel went on to apologize to fans—and his cast—in an interview with Glamour in August 2025, in which he recalled a conversation with a 65-year-old female friend who called him out for his comments. He apologized again to the women in his cast in the Season 2 premiere. “She said, ‘What you said was insensitive, and it’s just not who you are.’ My reference of dating was 39, 40 years old. I hadn’t dated in 26, 27 years. That’s what I told her,” Mel told Glamour. “She goes, ‘It doesn’t matter. You’ve said some things that are just incredibly wrong.’ And I go, ‘I’ve got to apologize.’”

Related: All the Golden Bachelor spoilers about Mel’s season

He continued, “I didn’t know anything about the Golden Bachelor ages. I didn’t know the age range because I wasn’t watching it. I’m thinking, to me, the age range was 45 to 60. That’s my age range. I’m thinking that’s the gold years for me. My reference, again, was when I was dating at 39, 40. I hadn’t dated in 26 years, so I had no clue. And that’s why I said that comment.”

His apology seemed to have been accepted by his cast, who fell hard for him throughout Season 2. But did Mel get engaged in The Golden Bachelor Season 2 finale? Read on for what he’s said.

Does Mel get engaged on The Golden Bachelor Season 2?

Reality Steve confirmed that Mel’s winner is on The Golden Bachelor Season 2 is Peg Munson, a 62-year-old Retired Firefighter and Bomb Tech from Las Vegas, Nevada. His runner-up was Cindy Cullers, a 60-year-old Retired Biomedical Engineer from Austin, Texas. Reality Steve also confirmed that Mel and Peg got engaged in The Golden Bachelor Season 2 finale.

While Mel did get engaged in the end, he hinted that an engagement wasn’t a priority to him in an interview with USA Today before his season’s premiere, in which he claimed that he prioritized finding love vs. getting married again. “Love is a good thing, it fills your heart, it makes you feel better, and it gives you a purpose,” he said. “I liked being in love. That’s the ultimate goal.”

As for his finale, Mel called the end to his season “brilliant” in an interview with Us Weekly in October 2025. “You have the setting, and I know who it is. It’s really emotional. And you’re a little nervous, but it’s so brilliant. … It’s so good, you won’t believe it,” he said.

He continued, “ABC can put on a production. We go to Antigua. I’ve never been there. I’ve been to islands, but I’ve never been there. But whoever scouted it out and set it up and got things prepared, just the little details, it’s just so good.” He also called the ending the “most dramatic.”

“You won’t believe how we get there, not mechanically, but how we get there emotionally,” he added. “There’s some movement and twists and turns.”

Who was Mel’s ex-wife before Peg on The Golden Bachelor Season 2?

Before The Golden Bachelor Season 2, Mel was married to his “first love” Fabiana Pimentel Owens from 2002 to 2020. Mel and Fabiana welcomed two sons—Lucas, born in 2005, and Andre, born in 2007—and raised their children in California before they filed for divorce from each other in February 2020, citing irreconcilable differences, according to court documents obtained by Us Weekly. 

At the time of the divorce filing, Mel and Fabiana agreed on joint custody. Mel and Fabiana finalized their divorce in December 2024 after an almost five-year legal battle. According to the court documents, Mel is 19 years older than Fabiana, which makes her around 47 years old at the time The Golden Bachelor Season 2 premiered. 

In an interview with Us Weekly in September 2025, Mel claimed that the reason for his and Fabiana’s divorce was that she had fallen in love with someone else. “Well, it’s never good, right?” he said. “But, you know, I’m never going to get in the way of someone’s happiness. If you want to find somebody else in a different phase in your life — it hurts — but I can’t get in the way of your happiness. And what’s your happiness may not be my happiness. That’d be a real conflict — you can’t stop somebody, say, ‘I’m over here now.’ You can beg and plead, but I’m fine. Life is short, and if you’re in love with somebody else, that’s fine.”

Mel also confirmed to Us Weekly that he heard from his children that Fabiana didn’t plan on watching his Golden Bachelor season. “I don’t know, but my boys told me, like, ‘Oh, she’s not gonna be watching.’ But everybody’s peeking,” he said. “I’d be watching [if it was her]! Everybody’s peeking.”

Host Jesse Palmer also told Us Weekly about what Fabiana and Mel’s sons thought about their dad as the Golden Bachelor in an interview with Us Weekly. “I had a chance to visit with him and his kids yesterday, and it’s really a unique and special bond to watch,” Jesse said. “I think he’s in this unique time now where he can finally focus a little bit more on it himself. His kids are getting ready to go off to college, and I think he really wants to find a special person.”

Who designed Mel’s engagement ring to Peg on The Golden Bachelor Season 2?

Neil Lane, a celebrity jeweler, who has created engagement rings for The Bachelor, The Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise since 2008, most likely designed Mel’s ring to Peg on The Golden Bachelor Season 2. Ex-host Chris Harrison told Entertainment Weekly in 2016 that engaged Bachelor Nation couples need to stay together for a set amount of time after their engagements to keep their free engagement ring from Lane. If they break up before that time, they must return it. “There’s some rule, after a certain number of years, you get to keep it anyway,” he said. “But after months… it goes back.”

Lane also told StyleCaster in 2016 that he doesn’t know where failed engagement rings go, but he makes each one with the intention that the couple stays together. “I make rings hoping that people stay together forever, but after they get the ring, I don’t have a say in it, and what happens after that, I don’t know,” he said. “Where the ring goes, I have to say, I don’t really know. I just say it goes to ring heaven.”

Who is Peg, Mel’s Golden Bachelor Season 2 winner?

Read Peg’s full Golden Bachelor Season 2 biography and fun facts ahead:

“Peg’s been through fire, literally. This retired firefighter and bomb tech rose from the flames stronger, sassier, and ready to find a spark that lasts. She’s a proud single mom, having raised her daughter, Dakota, with grit and grace. Peg is a woman of many talents, and while she isn’t afraid to get down and dirty, she’s also a lifelong dancer with a professional dance career as another feather in her cap. She used to perform with the High Rollers, the official senior dance team of the Aces basketball team. When it comes to dating, Peg doesn’t want to be anyone’s “nurse or purse.” She’s looking for the real deal — no dating apps, no drama, just real connection. Let’s see if Peg can light Mel’s fire.

Fun Facts:
• Peg’s favorite form of transportation is her unicycle.
• Peg is so happy bell-bottoms are making a comeback.
• Peg would love to play in the mud with baby elephants.”

He’s a successful athlete in his own right, but Bachelor Nation fans may be surprised to learn that Mel Owens‘ father has an even more prolific sports career than the Season 2 Golden Bachelor.

Mel Owens, a 66-year-old lawyer and a retired NFL linebacker from Laguna Hills, California, was announced as the Season 2 Golden Bachelor on April 2025. Before his reality TV career, Mel played as a linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams, where he signed a contract with worth $175,000 per season 1981. The Rams selected Mel after he was picked ninth overall in the 1981 NFL Draft. He played with the Rams until his retirement in 1989. Before the Rams, Mel played college football at the University of Michigan from 1976 to 1980.

Related: All the Golden Bachelor spoilers about Mel’s season

While his sports career is impressive, Mel’s father’s legacy stands the test of time. Meet the Season 2 Golden Bachelor’s dad ahead and see why his father made history.

Mel’s father is Walter Owens, a pitcher and outfielder who played for the Detroit Stars of Negro League Baseball from 1953 to 1955. He was born on August 19, 1933, in Cleveland, Ohio, however, he grew up in Detroit. He attended Western Michigan University, where he received a scholarship from and played basketball and track and field for.

Walter played for the Detroit Stars in the summer months in between college. Because he was a student at the time, Walter was forced to use an alias to keep his college amateur eligibility while still playing on the Detroit Stars. One of his most notable moments as a professional baseball player came when he hit a single and struck out in two at-bats while playing against legendary baseball player Satchell Paige, who played both in the Negro League Baseball and the Major League Baseball.

After graduating from Western Michigan University with a bachelor’s and master’s degree, Walter received an offer to play for the Indianapolis Clowns, a team in the Negro American League, though he turned down the offer to become a teacher. Later, Owens also became a baseball coach at Northwestern High School in Detroit, where he served as a member for future MLB All-Stars like Willie Horton and Alex Johnson. He also played amateur softball until 2007 when a stroke sidelined him at the age of 76.

Along with baseball, Owens also coached basketball. He also coached at Northern Illinois University before his retirement in 2007. His other sports accomplishments include playing against the Canadian Olympic basketball team and the Harlem Globetrotters and being a founding member of the National Congress of Black Faculty. He also took part in the Major League Baseball’s special draft of the surviving Negro League players in 2008 in tribute of those who were kept out of the major league due to their race. Owens was selected by the Chicago Cubs as part of the honorary draft.

Owens died on September 20, 2020. He was 87 years old. At the time of his death, Walter was married to a woman named Janice Owens. The press release for The Golden Bachelor Season 2 explained why 2020, which was also the year Mel filed for divorce from his ex-wife Fabiana Pimentel Owens, was such a pivotal time for him.

“While life took an unexpected turn with the passing of his father and the end of his marriage, Owens channeled his energy into being the best father he could be, focusing on raising his sons and coaching their extracurricular sports teams,” the press release read. “Now, after several years as a devoted dad, Owens is ready to rediscover a love rooted in the simple joys of companionship – sharing life’s everyday moments, making plans for the future, and growing stronger together as a couple.”

Since his death, Walter has been honored by many sports communities he worked with over the years.

“Coach O has done so much for NIU, and personally, for me and my family as a friend and mentor,” said Northern Illinois University Associate Vice President/Director of Athletics Sean T. Frazier said in an obituary. “Our hearts go out to [his wife] Janice and his entire family. This loss is personal not just for me, but for thousands of students who he coached, taught and encountered during an amazing career as an educator, and for the faculty, staff and coaches who he met, and offered an encouraging word and supported. He lived an amazing life, from his days as an athlete, playing in the Negro Leagues, to dedicating himself to young people and education – as a coach and as a faculty member.”

“I am greatly saddened by the loss of Coach Owens,” added NIU baseball head coach Mike Kunigonis. “He is one of the leading faces on the ‘Mount Rushmore’ of Huskieball. His contributions to our program, the NIU Community, DeKalb and the game of baseball have been felt and will continue to be felt for years to come. Coach O and Janice embraced me and my family the very first day we arrived here in DeKalb almost six years ago. I can never repay the kindness they have shown us over the years, I can only hope Coach knew and Janice knows how much they have meant to our program and to me personally. I will miss Coach dearly.”

Bachelor Nation fans may be surprised to learn that what Mel did for a living before he became the Golden Bachelor paid way more than his ABC salary as The Bachelor franchise’s latest lead.

Mel Owens, a 66-year-old lawyer and a retired NFL linebacker from Laguna Hills, California, was announced as the Season 2 Golden Bachelor on April 2025. However, less than two months later, he faced backlash for an interview he gave on the “MGoBlue Podcasts With Jon Jansen,” in which he claimed that the oldest woman he would date on The Golden Bachelor would be 60 years old when the producers asked, “What’s your preferences?” “I just said, ’45 to 60,’ just being honest,” Mel said on the podcast. “‘If they’re 60 or over, I’m cutting them.’ This is not The Silver Bachelor, this is The Golden Bachelor.”

Related: All The Golden Bachelor Season 2 spoilers about Mel

He continued, “[The executive producer] goes, ‘But they’re going to be hot, don’t worry about it, don’t worry about it.’ He goes, ‘You can’t use the word cut,’ I go, ‘That’s an NFL term…’ They’ve got to be fit, because I stay in shape and workout and stuff. And I told them to try to stay away from the artificial hips and the wigs.”

After his interview, Mel faced backlash from Bachelor Nation, with Reality Steve reporting that ABC was considering replacing him as the Golden Bachelor. Mel apologized for his comments in an interview with Glamour in August 2025, in which he recalled a conversation between him and a 65-year-old female friend who called him out. 

“She said, ‘What you said was insensitive, and it’s just not who you are.’ My reference of dating was 39, 40 years old. I hadn’t dated in 26, 27 years. That’s what I told her,” he said. “She goes, ‘It doesn’t matter. You’ve said some things that are just incredibly wrong.’ And I go, ‘I’ve got to apologize.’”

He continued, “I didn’t know anything about the Golden Bachelor ages. I didn’t know the age range because I wasn’t watching it. I’m thinking, to me, the age range was 45 to 60. That’s my age range. I’m thinking that’s the gold years for me. My reference, again, was when I was dating at 39, 40. I hadn’t dated in 26 years, so I had no clue. And that’s why I said that comment.”

What did Mel do for a living before The Golden Bachelor?

Before he became the Season 2 Golden Bachelor, Mel was a professional football player and linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League. He was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the first round (ninth overall pick) of the 1981 NFL draft and played nine seasons with the team until his retirement in 1989. Mel signed onto the Los Angeles Rams in 1981 with a contract worth $175,000 per season. He was also named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week by the NFL in 1986. 

After his retirement from the NFL, Mel explored several industries before landing his second career as a sports attorney. Following his time with the Los Angeles Rams, Mel launched a clothing line called Evolution Wear, as well as operated a nationwide restaurant reservation hotline called 1-800-LETS-EAT. He also worked as a financial advisor at Merill Lynch & Co. after passing the Series 7 Exam. 

His most notable post-NFL job, however, was as a founding partner of the law firm, Namanny, Byrne & Owens, in Laguna Hills, California, where he specialized in sports law, workers’ compensation, sports injuries, and disability benefits. Throughout his career, Mel represented more than 250 football players in workers’ compensation claims caused by football-related injuries. One of his most notable cases was a 2013 brain-injury lawsuit by multiple professional hockey players against the National Hockey League, which he was one of the lead attorneys on. 

What college did Mel from The Golden Bachelor go to?

Mel attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, from 1976 to 1980, where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science. While at the University of Michigan, Mel played for the Michigan Wolverines football team. 

After retiring from the NFL, Mel attended the University of California Hastings College of Law, where he earned a Juris Doctor. He was admitted to the State Bar of California in 2003. 

How much does Mel make as The Golden Bachelor? 

While Mel’s salary for The Golden Bachelor Season 2 hasn’t been confirmed, Season 19 Bachelorette Rachel Recchia revealed in an episode on the “Trading Secrets” podcast in September 2025 that every Bachelor and Bachelorette lead, aside from Season 8’s Emily Maynard, made around the same pay of $110,000 to $120,000. Rachel was the lead of The Bachelorette Season 19 alongside Gabby Windey. Both Rachel and Gabby were finalists on The Bachelor Season 26 with Clayton Echard.

“I was like, ‘If Gabby is up for this, it’s going to Gabby. I do not think there is a chance I’m getting this,’” Rachel said. “When they sent me the contract, they told me, they were like, ‘Well, this is the rate. We’ve only negotiated with one person, which was Emily Maynard, and she got the highest and we haven’t negotiated since. This is the contract.’” 

She continued, “I just didn’t think they wanted me that bad. So I just signed it to sign it just because, why would I not take the opportunity? I just didn’t think it was mine to argue with.”

According to a past report by In Touch Weekly, Emily made $250,000 as the Bachelorette. The producers have completely changed the format this season in order to meet Emily’s demands,” a source told In Touch at the time.

In Touch also reported that Emily was specific about the type of men she wanted on her season. “She wanted only the best-looking, most mannered guys,” the source said. “She’s whittling it down to a handful of candidates who she will spend a lot more time with. If she doesn’t like a guy, he’s gone.”

Season 14 Bachelorette contestant and “Trading Secrets” host Jason Tartick also confirmed on his podcast in May 2021 that he and his castmates, Colton Underwood and Blake Horstmann, were all offered $100,000 to be the Season 23 Bachelor. $100,000 hasn’t always been the range, however. Season 13 Bachelorette contestant Dean Unglert claimed on the same podcast that he was approached to be the Season 22 Bachelor with a $75,000 contract. 

Us Weekly also reported in 2011 that Season 7 Bachelorette Ashley Herbert made $30,000 for the role. The 2018 book, Bachelor Nation, also reported that Season 2 Bachelorette Meredith Philips made $10,000 as the lead. Though author Amy Kaufman also reported that it would be “incredibly rare for someone to make less than six figures” today.