SI Swimsuit model Christen Harper on meeting NFL star Jared Goff on dating app: ‘I sent the first message’

Christen Harper, co-winner of the 2021 Swim Search, was named co–Rookie of the Year with Katie Austin following her 2022 issue appearance. The model is featured in the 2023 issue of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit.

Christen Harper and Jared Goff found love in a not-so-hopeless place.

The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model and the Detroit Lions quarterback met on Raya, a dating app favored by celebrities. The couple was first linked in 2019. They announced their engagement in June 2022.

"… I swore that he messaged me first," Harper told Fox News Digital. "But when we went and looked back, I actually sent the first message."

Christen Harper and Jared Goff first met on Raya. (Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)

"So all you ladies out there, you better send the first message because you never know," she chuckled. "You gotta shoot your shot. You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take."

Harper said she and the NFL star quickly became inseparable after they met offline.

"It’s so funny thinking that we met on a dating app, but I feel like these days it’s so common," said the pinup. "And it’s really like how you meet people. Who knows if I would’ve ever met him? So I’m so happy that I went on that dating app five years ago… It’s so fun to see how we’ve grown. It’s been such a fun ride – and it all started online."

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From left to right, Rob Gronkowski, Camille Kostek, Christen Harper and Jared Goff attend a celebration for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit in Hollywood, Florida. (John Parra/Getty Images)

While Harper quickly scored a touchdown with her beau, the star admitted she was not so well-versed in football while they were dating.

"We