DWTSPro Rylee Arnold Confirms Romance with USC Football Player: 'Is This a Hard Launch?'

Mar. 15, 2025

Dancing with the StarsproRylee Arnoldappears to have a new boyfriend!

On Sunday, Oct. 27, Arnold, 19, shared several snaps with University of Southern California Trojans’ tight end Walker Lyons, joking onInstagramabout it being a “hard launch.”

One shot showed the couple looking loved-up on the field seemingly after USC Trojans' 42-20 victory against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Saturday, Oct. 26.

In the snap, the dancer gazed up lovingly at the athlete while placing her hand on his chest. A second photo showed her beaming in the stands while watching the game, as a different image showed her hugging her apparent new boyfriend.

She then shared a selfie with her sister and her sister’s husband, before finishing the carousel of photos with a cute snap of herself beaming while she stood next to her football player beau.

“Is this a hard launch?? 🤭❤️‍🔥,” Arnold — who joinedDWTSin 2023 — captioned the post.

Walker Lyons and Rylee Arnold.Rylee Arnold/instagram

Rylee Arnold/instagram

Taylor Lautnerwas among those commenting, joking, “Definitely ain’t a soft launch.”

Arnold also shared a clip from the game onTikTok, writing in the caption: “Really into football these days 🤭❤️‍🔥 @walkerlyons,” as well as sharing multipleInstagram Storiesimages of the couple at Disneyland, including one of herself kissing Lyons the cheek.

According to theUSC Trojans website, Lyons is a freshman from Folsom, Calif. and wears the number 85 jersey.

Arnold previously teased a potential new romance onTikTokon Oct. 4, telling followers in a video, “Okay friends, get ready with me for rehearsal while I debrief the date I went on a couple nights ago.”

“Fun fact, we actually hung out last night as well,” the dancer, who is partnered withStephen Nedoroscikon this year’sDWTS, told the camera.

“We’ve hung out two nights in a row now,” she added, revealing the pair had “got food” and “drove around.”

The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!

“He was so easy to talk to,” Arnold shared while discussing more details about the first date. “We have so many similarities which was so fun to talk about. He is so sweet and humble and just all the amazing qualities. So I’m really curious to see how this all pans out.”

She commented on the pair both having a “busy schedule,” saying: “Luckily, our schedules kind of work out together. We’re both busy and free at the same time of the week. It makes things kind of nice,” without naming the person she was talking about.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Arnold — who previously sparked romance rumors with her formerDWTSdance partner,Too Hot to HandlestarHarry Jowsey, —told PEOPLEin September that she was “currently single” and wasn’t back with her former boyfriend, who had been on a Mormon mission for two years.

“I am not back with him. I am currently single right now,” she said at the time. “[It’s] so fun. I love it. I love being single. It’s the best. I’ve been single for a while, but I love it.”

source: people.com