Fans couldn’t help but draw comparisons between Kelsey Anderson’s dad, Mark Anderson, and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, during the season 28 finale of The Bachelor.
“Tell me why Kelsey’s dad is [a] grey haired Travis Kelce,” one user wrote via X. Another added, “Kelsey’s dad looks like what I’d imagine Travis Kelce to look like when he’s older.”
During The Bachelor: After the Final Rose episode, which aired on Monday, March 25, the camera frequently panned to Mark’s real-time reactions. Host Jesse Palmer also asked Mark a question after it was revealed that Kelsey, 25, and Bachelor Joey Graziadei are engaged.
“Mark, I’ll ask you, what would you like to say to the happy couple?” Palmer, 45, asked, to which Mark replied, “Congratulations. To have watched this and seen it from the very beginning, from the first introduction until now, it’s been a blessing. I’ve got to see so much more than most parents would be able to see, along with everyone else of course. It’s a beautiful process. Couldn’t be prouder, couldn’t be happier. Cheers.”
After the sweet message, Palmer seemingly hinted at Mark’s future with The Golden Bachelor franchise, saying, “I don’t know, maybe we’ll see you down the road soon, too, that’s all I’m saying.”
When viewers met Kelsey’s family during the season’s hometown episodes, fans were quick to propose the idea of Mark making an appearance on the spinoff series. “Kelsey’s dad would be a top notch Golden Bachelor. #TheBachelor,” one user wrote via X.
Kelsey previously revealed during her first one-on-one date with Joey, 28, in Marbella, Spain, that her mom died in 2018 after a battle with breast cancer. While detailing her story, Kelsey added that her dad was rooting for her to find love while on The Bachelor.
“On the way to the airport, I was on the phone with dad, and I was like, ‘What do you think mom would think about all of this?’ He was like, ‘You’re your mother’s child. You’re so brave.’ He was like, ‘That’s something your mom would do.’ He just felt like I was exuding my mom’s energy, I guess,” she said, to which Joey replied: “With how you’re describing her energy, 100%.”
While Kelsey shared that she and her dad weren’t as close growing up because he was “working a lot,” she noted that they had bonded since her mom’s death.
“My dad is really my favorite guy,” she said during a February 2024 episode of The Bachelor. “Whenever anything happens, he’s the person I run to. Whenever I’m happy or I’m sad. And definitely in happy and sad moments I think that I really miss my mom but I know that I have my dad that I can lean on.”
She continued, “I think that I’m so thankful that he really stepped up. I think that’s something that I think is so amazing about him is that, like, he lost the love of his life and he’s had five kids. I can’t imagine that scenario, where you’re so devastated but so are these people that are depending on you. And you just kind of have to do your best and be there for them when you need people for you.”