It's that time again: the cast for the next season of The Bachelorette has been rolled out and it looks like we may have a few early frontrunners!

I have been on the Bachelor Nation beat for quite some time because who doesn't love watching the dramatic franchise each week? I love watching even more now that the show has some big Minnesota connections.

In case you haven't been following along, the next lead of The Bachelorette is Michelle Young from Minnesota! The Edina native was cast on the last season of The Bachelor when the lead was Matt James. She made it to the top two after coming into the season late and was instantly a frontrunner and a fan favorite.

She was eventually sent home before James chose the other woman in the running for his final rose but she will hopefully get her fairytale because she gets her hand at love on national television! While her season won't air for a bit, we are learning more about her season with every passing week.

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The latest development is the cast that will be vying for her heart very soon. The official cast was announced early on Monday (July 26th) and as always, there is a lot to dive into! However, we already know who we are rooting for.

The first person we are definitely rooting for is from Minnesota! This could be an early frontrunner, as our lead is also from Minnesota. According to spoiler guru Reality Steve, there are rumors floating around that these two already know each other. This always spells drama!

What makes him even more of a possible frontrunner is that fact that he lives in the same spot as Michelle and also loved basketball and has played it, just like the lead. He hails from Minneapolis so it wouldn't be shocking if they have run into each other at some point.

We will definitely find out if they know each other on the show, as this type of thing always makes for juicy episodes. Ha! His name is Joe Coleman, by the way.

There is someone else we are rooting for as well, thanks to his close ties to our neck of the woods! There is yet another future contestant with midwest ties. His name is Bryan Witzmann and he is 30-years old from Houlton. That is about a two and a half hour drive from the Twin Ports, in case you are curious.

He is a big football guy, having played in the NFL for several different teams. It isn't basketball but I don't think Michelle will care too much. Ha! That is all we know about him for now.

We will have to see how things shake out when the season premieres later this year. It will be part of ABC's Tuesday night lineup, premiering on October 19th. Because the next Bachelorette in question is from Minnesota, the show will also be filming there as well!

We recently learned that the show will be filming in Minnesota for most of the month of August, staying at a hotel in Minneapolis and filming in other local locations. At the time of writing, only one venue had been named as a filming spot.

In June, ABC was asking eligible men to apply to be on Michelle's season of The Bachelorette. I am glad some men from Minnesota and Wisconsin made the cut! Will they get the final rose? We will have to see.

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