The Bachelorette Recap: Clare Crawley Gives Future 'Husband' Dale Moss Her First Impression Rose!

You only get one shot to make a great first impression and on night one of The Bachelorette, it’s safe to say contestant Dale Moss absolutely knocked it out of the ~~park~~, er, resort!

Fans watched Clare Crawley meet all 31 men vying for her heart on Tuesday night, but unfortunately for those eligible bachelors, none of them could hold a candle to the 32-year-old former pro football player who left the season 16 lead gobsmacked from the moment he stepped out of that limo. Talk about love at first sight!!

The 39-year-old reality star fell hard and fast, whispering, “I knew it,” just seconds after meeting Moss. She took it a huge step further and uttered the shocking words no other Bachelor or Bachelorette before her has ever said so quickly:

“I definitely feel like I just met my husband. Oh my God. I’m shaking.”

Clare was near tears as she processed the encounter, telling host Chris Harrison about her unmistakable connection:

“Every other guy I felt confident with. But with Dale….everything else went dark around me. I don’t even know what I just said. Did I sound okay? Did I say anything at all!?”

Later in a confessional, she added:

“When Dale stepped out of the limo….it took my breath away.”

Wow! Although summer spoilers previously revealed these two had already digitally connected by this point, it’s still something to see and hear those sparks flying IRL, isn’t it?!

The South Dakota native continued to impress Clare all night long, especially during their one-on-one conversation where the two connected over their families. Dale expressed concern about her mother, who suffers from Alzheimer’s and dementia, while also opening up about having a sister with underlying health conditions. The two quickly bonded over the difficulties of not being able to come in contact with their loved ones during the coronavirus pandemic.

At one point, Moss turned up the flirt and gushed over his first impression of Crawley before filming began, telling her:

“When you were announced as the Bachelorette, I was watching on TV, and you walked out onstage and just had this beautiful energy…like a real confidence. You were so excited, but you knew you were exactly where you were meant to be. That’s something I felt. There’s so many things I can’t explain sometimes in words, but you just gotta feel [it].”

Their flirty chat must have sealed the deal because after talking to almost all of the guys, Clare admitted “everything just feels so natural with Dale” and she decided to give him the first impression rose!

“I’ve talked to so many many, and you’re the one I still want to keep talking to. As much as we talked, I want more of that. I absolutely want more of that.”

DUH!

After scoring big and sharing a very, very steamy kiss with the season’s lead, Dale was riding high with confidence and told the cameras:

“To have this first impression rose and just know that I’m going to be able to spend some more time with Clare…that’s huge. Even though it was in one night, we connected on so many different levels. I would love to just sit and talk with her for a couple more hours. Clare’s on my mind — let me just say that.”

Ahhh! We can’t wait to see how the rest of their short-lived TV journey unfolds. As you’re likely aware, Crawley reportedly quit the show early and got engaged to Moss, with franchise alum Tayshia Adams later stepping in to finish out the season. Of course, that bombshell decision doesn’t go over smoothly and ABC just debuted another teaser featuring that drama and more explosive moments to come this season on The Bachelorette!

Ch-ch-check out the titallating new promo (below)!

OMG. That looks crazzzzy, y’all! So many tears, fights, and possibly the biggest walkout in franchise history?! Wow. And what about that group date coming up where all of the guys appear to play some sort of stripping game? Bit of a controversial choice there considering that would not fly if the sexes were reversed, but hey, we’ll just have to wait and see!

Perezcious readers, did U catch the big premiere? Thoughts on anything you saw and what’s to come? Let us know (below) in the comments!

[Image via Bachelor ABC/YouTube]