ABC has found its next leading man, and he’s currently on an NFL practice squad.
Sam Hartman, the Washington Commanders quarterback, will star in the 30th season of “The Bachelor,” the network announced Friday. Hartman is 27 and spent six seasons in college between Wake Forest and Notre Dame before making the jump to the NFL.
His season is set to premiere in March, giving football fans a little offseason entertainment. Hartman will also add another name to the list of athletes who have appeared on the franchise, either as the lead or as a contestant.
Hartman’s path to this moment runs through three clear stops over the past eight years. He began at Wake Forest, where he committed out of high school and spent five seasons with the Demon Deacons. From 2018 to 2022, he played in 48 games, started nine games in four of those seasons, and took over as the unquestioned starter from 2020 through 2022.
By the end of his Wake Forest run, Hartman had piled up 110 passing touchdowns, nearly 13,000 passing yards, 41 interceptions and a 59.1 percent completion percentage. Wake Forest posted winning records in four of his seasons, with the high point coming in 2021 when the team finished 11-3.
With a year of eligibility left, Hartman transferred to Notre Dame for the 2023 season and immediately became the starter. He threw for 2,689 yards and 24 touchdowns for Marcus Freeman’s team, helping the Fighting Irish finish 10-3 and cap the year with a Sun Bowl win.
Hartman then entered the 2024 NFL Draft, but in a deep quarterback class he went undrafted. He signed with Washington as a free agent, landing behind rookie Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota on the depth chart. Even so, he stayed with the Commanders for the entire season as they reached the NFC Championship Game.
He returned to Washington in 2025 on the practice squad, though he wasn’t elevated until the end of the season. The Commanders brought him back again this year, and he remains on the practice squad for a second straight season.
In Other News...
Notre Dame Independence Suddenly Looks Smarter Than Ever
The College Football Playoffs move from 12 teams to 24 starting next year has already sent a ripple through the sport, and it has only sharpened the appeal of Notre Dames long-standing independence. As the Autonomy 4 conferences move to eliminate their championship games, the old arguments about needing a league title to secure a playoff spot suddenly look a lot different, especially for a program that has never depended on a conference structure to define its path.
Wake Forest coach Jake Dickert and Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz have both publicly raised questions about whether conferences still matter in the same way under the new format, and that kind of debate is exactly the sort of thing Notre Dame has been insulated from for years. With schools like Miami also weighing what these changes mean for conference affiliation and structure, the Irish find themselves in a familiar but newly relevant position: outside the system, yet perhaps better positioned than ever to benefit from it. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Gets Big Wins, A Fresh Freeman Hint And Heartbreak
A busy stretch around Notre Dame delivered plenty to talk about, starting with hockey, where Sammy Nelson scored twice and buried the overtime winner in a 3-2 upset of No. 4 Michigan State. The Irish have now won three straight, and freshman goalie Patrick Quinlan kept the surge going with 33 saves for his third consecutive victory, a strong sign that the team is finding real traction at both ends of the ice.
The momentum carried into mens basketball, where Ethan Roberts poured in a career-high 36 points and matched the program mark for made 3-pointers in a game during a 99-59 rout of South Carolina State. On the football side, Marcus Freeman offered an encouraging update on young cornerbacks Khary Adams and Ayden Pouncey while also leaving the door open on Brauntae Johnsons recovery, even as the program was also dealing with the sudden passing of broadcaster Dan Hicks. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Defense Has A Chance To Take Over This Rivalry Game
Notre Dames defense walks into this matchup with some real momentum after a strong showing against Miami, and Chris Ashs group has a clear path to controlling the game if it can keep the pressure on Boston College. The Eagles have had trouble protecting the football and even more trouble keeping their quarterback upright, which gives the Irish a chance to turn a rivalry game into a field-position battle.
The matchups in the trenches should tell a lot of the story, starting with Boubacar Traore on Boston College right tackle Kristian Phillips and Tionne Gray inside against center DJ Williams. Notre Dame has been among the nations better teams at creating turnovers, and if that trend carries over, the Irish defense could spend the afternoon forcing Boston College to play from behind the chains and never really find a rhythm. [Read more 🡒]