Bachelorette fans, buckle your seatbelts! Jenn Tran might have unintentionally revealed the top three contenders for her final rose during episode 5 of The Bachelorette, and Bachelor Nation can thank the one and only Austin Ott and his untimely exit.
Incredibly frustrated that he was one of the only men to not have embarked a one-on-one date with the leading lady — falling into the “group date only” party alongside Dylan Buckor and Jeremy Simon — Austin began to question whether or not he could reach the point of popping the question to Jenn at the end of the hit competition show, in true Bachelor and Bachelorette fashion. Sitting down with Jenn, Austin told the New Jersey native that he was failing to feel seen throughout his Bachelorette journey, admitting that he would be doing himself and the other men a disservice continuing to vie for her heart. After all, a proposal is a massive deal, and it only makes sense if both parties are 100% invested in the relationship…
Ultimately deciding to self-eliminate from the series, Jenn took Austin’s unexpected departure personally, questioning whether or not she is enough for the men that she still has in the running for her final rose. Within this period of self-reflection, she pinpointed three of her suitors specifically — Marcus Shoberg, Sam McKinney, and Devin Strader — leading fans of the Bachelor franchise to believe that they are who she has the strongest feelings for at this point in her Bachelorette journey.
“Maybe I’m not enough for Marcus. Maybe I’m not enough for Sam M. Maybe I’m not enough for Devin,” she said at the time, which an X (formerly known as Twitter) user named @hkchura clocked as Jenn’s top three contenders.
With Sam M. causing quite a bit of controversy thus far — notably beefing with newfound fan-favorite Devin Strader — Bachelor Nation was not happy to hear that he is occupying so much space in the leading lady’s head and heart, especially when there are other amazing men to choose from:
“God I hope not… At least not Sam”
“Come on Jenn… Anyone but Sam!!!”
“Sam and Devin are all in during the chase, but as soon as it’s go time? Not so much.”
Based on this statement alone, some fans of the Bachelor franchise went so far as to question whether or not Jenn is even mature enough to be the Bachelorette altogether, seemingly going after the wrong guys time and time again:
“I adore Jenn but I don’t feel she’s grown/healed enough for this role. She doesn’t seem like she’s quite secure in herself, and I’m sure that’s made worse by the audience’s reaction when she was announced. Plus, no matter what she says, she’s not ready to pick a real man, and it shows in who she gravitates towards… She connects with men like Grant, Johnathan, Spencer, etc. who are kind and unproblematic and well-rounded, but still chooses Sam M., Devin, and Marcus when all options are presented.”
While this is mere speculation, do you think that Marcus Shoberg, Sam McKinney, and Devin Strader are actually Jenn’s finalists? To find out who her top three ends up being — as well as who (if anyone) steals her heart come finale night — tune into brand new episodes of The Bachelorette Mondays on ABC. Based on the preview shown at the end of the episode last night (August 5), the remainder of the season looks like it is going to be jam-packed with juicy drama…