Former football player and star on “The Bachelor” Colton Underwood came out as gay in an interview with Robin Roberts on “Good Morning America.” The reality television personality opened up about how he came to terms with his sexuality and how he found the strength to open up about it on national TV.

“I’ve ran from myself for a long time, I’ve hated myself for a long time. And I’m gay, and I came to terms with that earlier this year and have been processing it,” he said. He talked about how 2020 and the lockdown had given him the chance to reflect on his life and his choices. “This year’s been a lot for a lot of people and it’s probably made a lot of people look at themselves in the year and figure out who they are,” he said.

Born in Indiana, Underwood was originally a professional football player, first signed on as an undrafted free agent for the San Diego Chargers out of Illinois State and then making it to the Oakland Raiders practice squad. After he was released from the Raiders, he went on to compete on the 14th season of “The Bachelorette,” getting eliminated in week eight. He eventually was brought on to star in the 23rd season of “The Bachelor,” where his virginity served as a major plot point, eventually ending up with Cassie Randolph.

Randolph and Underwood were together till May of 2020, after which allegations were made against Underwood of stalking and harassing Randolph. He addressed his sexuality in his 2020 memoir, “The First Time: Finding Myself and Looking for Love on Reality TV,” stating that dating Randolph made him realize he was “very straight.”

"I shared with [@Colton] something my mother said when I told her about my sexuality, that I'm gay. And she said, 'God loves you because of who he is and not because of anything you do or don't do.'" — @robinrobertshttps://t.co/PoYJUAPBpA pic.twitter.com/ibrM8ymUJi

— Good Morning America (@GMA) April 14, 2021

Underwood also revealed having suicidal thoughts during his conversation with Roberts. “There was a moment in LA that I woke up and I didn’t think I was gonna wake up. I didn’t have the intention of waking up. And I did,” he said. “And I think that was, for me, my wake up call, like ‘this is your life, take back control.’”