Water cooler shows are often guilty pleasures watched on TV and then discussed in detail with family members, co-workers and friends.

"The Bachelor" and "The Bachelorette" shows on ABC can attribute their success to what is said around the water cooler the next morning. And this season, the show deserves extra time and extra talk because of a pair of local connections.

As the contestants compete to stand out to earn the rose from Andi Dorfman, they will be leaning on past experiences and connections to win the affection of "The Bachelorette." 

Enter Josh Murrary, a financial representative living in Athens, Ga., who has an athletic and interesting past. After graduating from high school in the Tampa Bay, Fla., area, Murray was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers. Apparently, he was the team's second pick in the 2002 draft, right behind Prince Fielder.

According to the Brewers, Murray was in the organization from 2002 to 2006, spending time with minor league affiliates Ogden, Beloit and West Virginia. He played with Brevard County in 2005 and '06.

Now, he will have made it to Milwaukee, via air time on WISN-TV Ch. 12.

Examiner.com reported that Murray, 29, later walked onto the University of Georgia football team and graduated with a business administration degree.

Lauren Murray, Josh’s mom, told the Athens Banner Herald that her son left earlier this month for filming and had to give up all forms of communications while working on the show.

"He thought it was a joke when (ABC) called him," Lauren Murray said.

Reality show insiders are believe Murray, with his famous quarterback brother Aaron, has what it takes to have a long run on the show. If he doesn’t get the final rose, he may be the next one chosen to be "The Bachelor."

Another contestant, Nick Viall, lives and works in Chicago as a software sales executive. The 33-year-old is a graduate of Waukesha North, where he was a stand-out track athlete and won the 800-meter dash at the WIAA state meet in 1999. Viall also was a part of the track team at UW-Milwaukee.

Viall was given the first impression rose on the season opener.

"There was something sincere and modest about him and, I don't know, he just stood out to me," Dorfman said.

A third candidate among the 25 on "The Bachelorette" had a Wisconsin connection. Dr. Jason Leep of Sturgeon Bay was sent home on the first episode.

BEHIND THE SCENES: TVGN will premiere a primetime television special that goes behind the scenes of CBS’s "Watch! Magazine" as it takes stars to exotic destinations for high-end photo shoots. 

The "WATCH! TV" special will air at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 3, and feature Michael Weatherly ("NCIS") at the Mandarin Oriental in Hyde Park, London and Rachelle Lefevre ("Under the Dome") at the Four Seasons Hotel in Hampshire, England and at Jane Austen’s House Museum in Hampshire.

"Our aim with every photo shoot is to create a dream-like setting that wows both the talent and the reader," said Jeremy Murphy, the editor in chief of "Watch! Magazine."

"Bringing the photograph to life and letting fans be a part of the journey is one of the hallmarks of ‘Watch! Magazine.’"

The special airing on TVGN gives an inside look at the thoughtfully crafted and meticulously planned photo shoots

"Fans are going to get intimate access to their favorite talent while getting to see some of the most remarkable locations in the world," said Brad Schwartz, president of entertainment and media at TVGN.

"Part travelogue, part high fashion, part celebrity introspective, this special takes viewers behind the scenes, very literally, into both the making of a magazine and the way in which the talent experiences the journey."