Paul Skenes and Olivia Dunne both went to college together at LSU. Skenes was a baseball star for the Tigers and was selected first overall in the 2023 MLB Draft.
He won a National Title with the LSU Tigers in 2023. As for Dunne, she is a gymnast for LSU and is one of the most viral athletes in all of college sports. In the past, she has received criticism on her social media posts. Dunne had to deal with another hater on one of her social media posts.
Paul Skenes’ Girlfriend Olivia Dunne Responds to Haters On TikTok
Last week, Dunne suffered a season-ending injury for the Tigers. This was her fifth and final season with the program. One of her “fans” on TikTok named Clayton Bigsby commented on a post saying, “Don’t worry, you’ll be a senior for the next 10 years.
She clapped back at this hater immediately and said on her TikTok, “I don’t really understand what’s so hard to get. I came to college in 2020, got granted a fifth year because of COVID, and I came back for the fifth year.
I only ever see this comment on female athletes’ posts and why do you care if I come back for a fifth year and have another year of eligibility? Like why do you care? Football and basketball players redshirt and take fifth years all the time.”
Things are crazy today in the college sports landscape. Players at the college level are getting extra years of college eligibility now because of the new NIL rules and transferring. It feels rare for a college player to stick with one team throughout their collegiate careers.
In the past, it felt more frequent for a player to be redshirted and stay five years with the same program. Dunne was with the Tigers for five seasons.
In addition to defending her decision, she pointed out a stark contrast with a fellow LSU athlete.
“The starting quarterback of LSU football is coming back for a fifth year,” Dunne said. “This comment is nowhere to be found on his account,” she said.
Garrett Nussmeier will be the starting quarterback for the Tigers this season. Dunne is right that Nussmeier didn’t face any backlash for coming back for a fifth season with LSU. This summer, she will be watching Skenes pitch in many MLB games for the Pirates and it will be interesting to see how well he does this season.
Skenes Chasing History
Skenes is looking to become the first Pirates pitcher to win the Cy Young award since Doug Drabek in 1990. The Pirates have been tough to watch over the past few seasons, mainly because they have not had many exciting players. Skenes has lived up to the hype of being a first-overall pick; the better he pitches, the higher expectations will rise.
Even after a successful rookie season, Skenes is far from satisfied. He has looked for ways to improve this offseason and has come across a new pitch. Skenes has seemingly introduced a cutter into his repertoire.
READ MORE: Skenes Makes Feelings Known on Pirates’ Potential this MLB Season
Skenes has made two starts so far in spring training; he has thrown six innings, allowing eight hits with seven strikeouts. His ERA is 4.50, but most pitchers are working on specific things early in spring training, so the stats are typically inconclusive.
We will see Skenes make his first start of the regular season on Opening Day. It will be the first of many in his career, and he will take on the Miami Marlins on March 27.