Louisiana's first sports power couple showed up Sunday at the state's most famous sports venue.
LSU gymnast and Instagram sensation Olivia Dunne was joined by friend, Pittsburgh Pirates prospect and former Tigers pitcher Paul Skenes in the Superdome, where the New Orleans Saints fell 33-28 to the visiting Detroit Lions.
Although Dunne made millions from endorsement deals during her college career in nearby Baton Rouge, the 21-year-old New Jersey native admitted she had never been to an NFL game. As she wrote on Instagram, “First NFL game everrr!”
Skenes and Dunne were not alone in the luxury suite. The smiling couple was joined by one of Skenes' former college teammates, relief pitcher Clay Moffitt, and his wife Brooke.
The group appeared to be in a luxury suite, which should come as no surprise: Skenes received a record $9.2 million bonus after being drafted first by the Pirates in July, while Dunne ranks third in NIL earnings among college athletes in the rankings. According to sources, that is $3.3 million Op3.comand has also signed on to shoot her second Sports Illustrated photo.
From left to right: ex-LSU pitcher Clay Moffitt, his wife Brooke, Olivia Dunne and Paul Skenes
Dunne teased the upcoming photo on Instagram with a bikini shot on Sunday. According to the report, the photos were taken in Porto, Portugal.
She was announced as a swimsuit rookie last month and shared a behind-the-scenes video from the shoot, expressing her surprise at receiving the honor.
“I'm coming back for year 2, I mean last year I said it was a dream come true, and nothing has changed,” she said.
'It's still a dream come true. I can't believe I can call myself a rookie. It feels surreal.'
The announcement came as Dunne was also named to the Forbes 30 under 30 list for sports figures, with the publication estimating that she has earned approximately $2.3 million in endorsement deals over the past twelve months.
It represents another big moment in what has been a whirlwind year for Dunne, who has seen her fame skyrocket.
Due to her enormous popularity, she had to permanently switch to online classes at LSU.
She told Elle: 'There have been some fears in the past and I just want to be as careful as possible. I don't want people to know what my daily schedule is and where I am.'
LSU's first gymnastics meet of 2023 was attended by raucous – and youthful – male fans who were there to catch a glimpse of Dunne; singing and reportedly introducing other gymnasts.
“It was our first meeting of the season,” Dunne told Elle. 'I knew that my success had become greater than the years before, but I didn't expect that there would be so many people to see me and my team.
'I didn't really realize it until I saw the videos of it after the meeting. I was like, 'Holy moly.'
LSU gymnastics then hired a bodyguard to protect her and the team from hordes of screaming teenage fans who gathered at her rallies.
Skenes, meanwhile, was impressive in his first foray into professional baseball.
After leading the Tigers to a College World Series victory, Skenes pitched at three different minor league levels in 2023.
Although he didn't give up an earned run in Rookie Ball or at Single-A, he shook in two innings for Double-A Altoona, giving up four earned runs.
Regardless, Skenes currently ranks third on MLB.com's list of the top 100 prospects.
The pair were rumored to have been together for months but did not publicly confirm their relationship until August, when Skenes admitted that he deliberately kept social media off his phone to avoid reading about himself and Dunne.
“I wasn't into it this season because it's toxic,” Skenes told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 'If you see something positive about yourself or something negative, it doesn't matter. There is no content in it. It can't help.'