Eric Bigger decided he might have sounded like a sore loser when neither he nor Peter Kraus was chosen by rachel lindsay as the one to become engaged to on "The Bachelorette." He admits he misspoke when he called Bryan Abasolo a "consolation prize."

Now the 29-year-old Baltimore, Maryland native is opening up and admitting his comment was controversial. In an interview with Home & Family last week, he talked about being one of the top three on "The Bachelorette" with Rachel Lindsay, the only black lead of the franchise. To Eric's credit, he never thought he had an advantage because he and Rachel are black.

He did think Rachel was more in love with Peter than with Bryan.

Eric also told PEOPLE that he owns up to what he said. He explained his comment was based on what he thought instead of what he knew for sure. He added that there was no ill-will or disrespect. He apologized for having offended Bryan, Rachel or anyone else.

Bigger's journey

On the reality show, Eric admitted that he had never been in love before and he had never taken a girl home to meet his family. Those two things were red flags for Rachel. While she was fond of Eric, she didn't think he was mature enough when it came to love, and romance and she wanted more from someone who was better suited for her and her lifestyle. Eric did get the first fantasy suite date with Rachel.

Apparently, it was not enough to sway the pendulum in his direction.

Eric says he wants nothing but the best for the happy couple because they have a connection and he thinks their relationship will last based on the committed relationships their parents have. Both of their parents have been married more than 30 years.

Rachel said she knew in her heart of hearts that Eric was not the person for her even though she thinks he is a wonderful person.

When Eric appeared on the finale, he looked more mature. He was wearing a beard, and he accepted Rachel's rejection of him with grace. He indicated no ill feeling toward her.

Since the finale

Rachel and Bryan have been seen a lot in public since "The Bachelorette" ended. They have had a couple of engagement parties in Dallas and Houston.

The happy couple is trying to decide whether to live in Rachel's hometown in Dallas or where Bryan has his chiropractor practice in Miami or Los Angeles where Rachel wants to start a career in broadcast journalism. They want a winter wedding next year. Then they will start a big family of at least four children.

It's a good thing that Eric retracted his comment because those things sure don't sound like a consolation prize.
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