Scott D. Pierce: RSL's Nick Rimando loves 'The Bachelor'? It's true

This past Monday, you would have thought that Real Salt Lake goalkeeper Nick Rimando would have been feeling pretty good. After all, just 48 hours earlier, RSL had come from behind to stun the defending champion Los Angeles Galaxy, 3-1.

But Rimando was disappointed. Even a bit upset. Because Ben picked Courtney in the season finale of "The Bachelor."

"Courtney you're FAKE! That's it," he tweeted. And, "All the magazines were right, but the decision was wrong."

That wasn't somebody else tweeting for Rimando. It was him. And, yes, he loves "The Bachelor."

"That's one of my shows," he said. "It's very entertaining. It's something I've been hooked on since the first season. I think there's a lot of guys that secretly like it, but won't admit it.

"There's drama, there's excitement, there's humor for sure. It makes me laugh. I mean, watching some of these guys and girls on the show — you wouldn't believe what they do unless you see it."

And there are RSL fans who don't quite believe that Rimando is a fan.

"People wouldn't expect me to watch it," he said. "It's definitely outside the lines of me going to bed watching 'SportsCenter.' I can sit down on my couch, relax, watch the show with my wife, hang out and have a good laugh.

"My [Twitter] followers love it. And they love when I tweet about it."

And he's not the only RSL player who watches. He's converted several others — including Kyle Beckerman, Ned Grabavoy and Nat Borchers.

"In preseason, it's like — 'It's Monday, let's go get some dinner. Well, we've got to be back by 7 because "The Bachelor" is on,' " Rimando said. "We get into it.

"The next morning we'll come in and be like, 'Did you see that episode? What was she thinking, man?' There's definitely some gossip you'd think women would be dealing, but it's us."

Rimando is a husband and father, but he said if he were single he'd jump at a chance to be on the show.

"With that many beautiful girls?" he said. "If I wasn't married, I would love to."

Rimando is also a big fan of "The Bachelorette" and "Bachelor Pad," which is his favorite.

"That show is crazy!" he said.

You might also find him watching "So You Think You Can Dance" or "Dancing With the Stars," shows he has less interest in joining — although he's "the best slow dancer."

"My wife thinks I'm a good dancer," Rimando said with a laugh.

These days, he's busy doing things like beating the New York Red Bulls 2-0 on Saturday.

But he's also looking ahead to the next season of "The Bachelorette," which begins May 14.

"Can't wait," he said.

Scott D. Pierce covers television for The Salt Lake Tribune. Email him at spierce@sltrib.com; follow him on Twitter @ScottDPierce.