Why DWTS ' Rylee Arnold Says Partner Connor Wood Was Not "Prepared"

Originally appeared on E! Online

Rylee Arnold‘s motto? Dance big or go home.

And that’s exactly what the <a href="https://www.eonline.com/news/1425398/dancing-with-the-stars-rylee-arnold-on-critics-season-35″ rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank”>Dancing With the Stars pro helped partner Connor Wood do during his season 35 debut Sept. 15, despite confessing that she believed the podcaster was not fully ready for the experience.

“I don’t think he was prepared for the performance aspect of this. It’s like nothing else,” Rylee exclusively told E! News’ Will Marfuggiduring their joint interview after the premiere. “And as a dancer, even myself stepping into this, it’s so foreign and just stressful because it’s a live show.”

Indeed, the competitive dancer was still taking in the exciting evening in the ballroom—and all the pressure that comes with each step closer to landing the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy.

As the 21-year-old put it, “There’s so much at stake, and you do so much rehearsal to get ready, and it’s that one moment that you have to nail it. But he did such a good job.”

As for Connor’s take on how his first routine went?

“I don’t know how to describe it. It’s a weird feeling,” he admitted with a laugh. “I might throw up, but I’m also really hungry. I’ve never felt that.”

The 31-year-old added, “We don’t practice here,” referring to the ballroom, which was why “going out there, it was kind of blind.”

And Rylee can relate to the TikToker being a newbie to the DWTS family. After all, she became a pro three years ago, coaching stars like reality TV star Harry Jowsey and Olympian Stephen Nedoroscik since 2023.

And the Utah native—whose sister is former proLindsay Arnold—has worked hard to earn her spot returning to the ABC hit. Last year, she responded to fan criticism questioning her teaching technique.

CONNOR WOOD, RYLEE ARNOLD, DWTS — Disney/Eric McCandless

“There’s been a lot of things this year [and] people saying that I’m not coming back next season, that I’m not gonna be asked back,” Rylee told Julianne Hough during a 2025 episode of The Morning After (Show), “or people saying I don’t know how to teach.”

“I would absolutely love to do another season—if not a bunch of more seasons—in my life, if they want me there,” she explained, adding that the outside scrutiny was “just noise.”

Read on to check out Rylee and Connor’s stiff competition for this year’s ballroom dance-off.