Greg Grippo is definitely a bachelor to watch on Katie Thurston's season of The Bachelorette considering he's one of her early frontrunners.
ADVERTISEMENT
Not only did Greg, a 27-year-old marketing sales representative from Edison, NJ, receive Katie's First Impression Rose, but he also accompanied The Bachelorette star on the first one-on-one date of Season 17.
RELATED LINK: MEET ALL OF KATIE THURSTON'S 'THE BACHELORETTE' SEASON 17 BACHELORS (PHOTOS)
Greg initially came across as a shy and nervous guy, and so Katie said she gave him the First Impression Rose to provide him with some validation and confidence.
Katie appreciated how Greg was "true to himself" on Night 1, according to Us Weekly, and that he "didn't try and act cool." She actually found his anxiety "endearing."
ADVERTISEMENT
Katie and Greg's connection continued on their one-on-one date, as the pair bonded over having lost their fathers recently.
Katie admitted to Greg that she had selected him for the special fishing date because she used to go fishing with her father and wanted to share that event with a man whom she could envision herself ending up with on The Bachelorette.
Greg insisted he's always be there for Katie as her rock, and Katie gushed about Greg's good and kind heart.
"Am I falling for him? I mean, it feels like it," Katie said of the "really sweet" and "amazing" bachelor.
So will Greg turn out to be Katie's winner or will their fast-burning relationship slow down and eventually fizzle out?
ADVERTISEMENT
Until viewers can find out what happens next between Katie and Greg on The Bachelorette, let's learn some things about this bachelor right now.
Below is a list of eight facts Reality TV World has compiled about Greg Grippo.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Greg Grippo considers himself to be a hopeless romantic
The bachelor's idea of a first date would be something active such as riding bikes, dancing or going to a concert.Greg claims he's ready to find that special person to grow old with and treat like a queen.
ADVERTISEMENT
According to ABC, Greg is "the full package" in that he's "handsome, kind, vulnerable and serious about wanting to settle down."
Greg looks forward to having a big -- or rather huge -- family!
Greg says he isn't rushing to have kids, as he'd like to travel the world with his wife before completely settling down and starting a family.However, Greg doesn't want just one or two kids when that time comes. Instead, he wants to have at least six children!
The Bachelorette suitor is family-oriented
Greg says he's extremely close with his family. He has a brother Joe as well as a sister Samantha.Greg has high standards for a healthy, happy and successful marriage thanks to being raised by his parents, who showed him what love looks like.
ADVERTISEMENT
Greg's father, however, sadly passed away from cancer two years ago.
"One day we're at a Knicks game and the next day I'm getting a call that he has Stage IV cancer and that he has a month to live," Greg said on The Bachelorette.
RELATED LINK: BACHELORETTE SPOILERS: WHO DID KATIE THURSTON PICK AND END UP WITH? WHAT HAPPENS ON THE 2021 SEASON OF 'THE BACHELORETTE' (SPOILERS)
The Bachelorette bachelor didn't stay in New Jersey for college
Formally known as Gregory James Grippo, he attended Saint Michael's College in Vermont, where he majored in Business and minored in Gender Studies.Greg has some athletic skills to show off to Katie!
The bachelor, standing 6'3," tall played basketball all four years of his college career.Greg shot 795 points during his time on the Purple Knights team, and he scored 289 of those points his senior year. Greg also served as team caption his senior year before graduating in 2016.
Greg reveals his weakness, biggest pet peeve and dream!
Greg says he cries during movies and isn't ashamed of that, and his biggest pet peeve is slow drivers.As for a dream he'd love to achieve, Greg hopes to one day see Lebron James play basketball in person.
Greg has been accused of trying to "pull a fast one" on Katie and The Bachelorette viewers
A source says Greg is "lying" about his career as a marketing sales representative and is actually an "actor" who is "seeking fame," according to The Sun.Greg allegedly has "a big ego" and scrubbed previous on-camera work he's done from his social-media accounts and LinkedIn profile to give the impression he's not trying to further his career in the entertainment industry.
The source told The Sun that acting is Greg's "passion" and he's not being truthful about his career and intentions on the show.
ADVERTISEMENT
"He's always wanted to pursue an on-camera career," claimed the insider.
Greg also apparently graduated from William Esper Studio, an NYC acting school, in 2019, and the show has made no mention of it. There is also no mention of Greg having attended this school on his public accounts.
Greg's LinkedIn page says Greg only began working for Mondo marketing in November 2020, meaning he became an employee at the company only a few months before leaving to film for The Bachelorette this year.
There appears to be some bad blood between Greg and Katie now
Katie was caught "liking" and later "unliking" a meme that reads, "When the guy next to you is getting interrogated about wanting to be the bachelor and you've gotta pretend to be disgusted while hiding your acting career aspirations," according to Us Weekly.The meme featured Greg putting his hand over his face in distress and was posted by The Bachelor Season 22 alum Bekah Martinez's podcast "Chatty Broads" on June 22.
The photo of Greg appearing to be annoyed was in reference to a scene that aired on the June 21 episode of The Bachelorette episode in which Thomas Jacobs admitted during a group date he had signed up for the show to promote his career and have a platform.
Katie also subsequently took to her Instagram Stories and posted a video of herself listening to Olivia Rodrigo's breakup anthem "Traitor," which many fans believed was The Bachelorette star slamming Greg once again.
However, Greg's family apparently has his back!
After Katie reportedly "liked" and "unliked" the meme about Greg's shady aspirations to become an actor, Greg's sister Samantha Collova reportedly dished it right back to Katie.
The Bachelor fan Instagram account @Bachelorteaspill posted a screenshot of Samantha's since-deleted comment that reportedly read, "@thekatiethurston likes this post but was such a supporter of removing the toxicity and mean girls when she was on [Matt James]'s season, you'd think if those intentions [were] genuine she'd had just as much of an issue with this post as well."
Samantha allegedly added in the comment, "Really disappointed in this."
Bekah -- who competed for Arie Luyendyk Jr.'s heart on The Bachelor's 22nd season -- made it known, however, her meme about Greg was intended to be light-hearted and funny.
ADVERTISEMENT
In the face of backlash, Bekah wrote in the comments section of her meme post, "IT'S A JOKE PEOPLE, I WENT ON THE SHOW 4 CLOUT TOO OKAY. I JUST HATE GREG."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Interested in more The Bachelor news? Join our The Bachelor Facebook Group!