Lions QB Jared Goff Says Wedding to Christen Harper Will Be ’Something We’ll Remember Forever’ (Exclusive)

Jared Goff and fiancée Christen Harper are planning a wedding to “remember.”

The NFL quarterback, 29, who recently partnered with Jared Jewelers, spoke to PEOPLE about his upcoming nuptials to Harper as they inch closer to their wedding date.

“This summer we're getting married in California, and we're very excited,” Goff says. “California is where I grew up and live currently, and my fiancée is from just outside of [Los Angeles] so she was born and raised there as well. So we have some pretty good roots there.”

He went on to note that they envisioned a two-year engagement in order to make sure everything for the wedding was planned to perfection.

"It's been a long time coming, and now you can see it on the horizon, and I know she's excited,” he explains. “I know she's doing a lot of the planning. I haven't been much involved and hopefully get back involved a little bit now, but it'll be really fun.” 

“We'll have all our friends and family there. It'll be a big party and something we'll remember forever,” he adds. 

Goff also underscored just how excited he was to spend the rest of his life with Harper and describes his perfect day off the field with his Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model fiancee.

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“It starts out [with] a walk. WE live in L.A., so a nice sunny beach walk with my fiancée,” he shared. “And then sushi.” 

“I'm probably going to end up taking a nap at some point,” he jokes. “And then it's going to end with a pasta dinner at home, just me and my fiancée, and we're good.”

The Detroit Lions player popped the question to Harper on a romantic beach while they were vacationing with friends in Los Cabos, Mexico. The model called the getaway "the best weekend of her life" in an Instagram post.

"6.16.22 can't wait for forever with you," she wrote in a caption announcing the engagement. She later told her social media followers a few days later that she was "still on cloud 9."

In his own engagement post, the NFL player wrote, "I'm the luckiest guy in the world because I get to spend forever with you. I love you @christenharper.”

The couple have been linked since early 2019 when the New York Post reported that Harper attended Super Bowl 53 to support Goff, who was playing for the L.A. Rams at the time. Since then, she has been one of his biggest fans on social media, even cheering him on during his first win with the Lions.

The Lions recorded their first winning season since 2017 before the San Francisco 49ers defeated them in the NFC Championship game on Jan. 28. The 9-8 record and deep playoffs run brought increased fandom for Goff and Detroit's NFL team.

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On April 23, Goff and Jared Jewelers will give back to the city of Detroit by presenting Detroit-based nonprofit, Give Merit, with a donation to their FATE Program.

The FATE Program provides mentorship, leadership development, and support to Detroit youth to help them graduate high school and college on time. Jared Jewelers and Goff will also honor some of Detroit’s biggest football fans and supporters with a personal “thank you” for their support during the historic 2023 season.

Fans will be expecting a meet and greet with Jared Goff but will receive an “offensive lineman-worthy" surprise gift.

Goff tells PEOPLE the partnership with Jared Jewelers is seamless, and not just because of the name connection.

"Obviously the name makes it easy, but beyond that, I think what they provide to customers and the personal custom experience that they provide and their wide range of variety of jewelry and whatnot is such an organic partnership for me, and a company that I'm really proud to be partnered with."

To Detroit Lions fans, the jeweler's slogan, "He went to Jared," has became a nod to Goff's excellence on the field.

"Years ago, as soon as that commercial became a thing, and the name is spelled the same, it became a joke amongst my friends," says Goff. "And then it started to show up in our stadium quite a bit this year on the signs, and people liked to use that when we would win games and I'd be playing well. So it was fun."