ROBERTSDALE, Ala. – Life for Cody Harris these days is somewhat of a whirlwind.

A planned face-to-face interview had to be done over the phone on Tuesday because of another commitment.

It’s been about two months since Harris, 22, left filming of CMT’s reality dating show “Sweet Home Alabama,” but he has yet to adjust to life outside the show.

“It’s been really crazy,” he said. “You have no idea how crazy it’s been.”

Set in Point Clear and filmed primarily at various locations in Baldwin County, “Sweet Home Alabama” brings country girl Devin Grissom of Tuscaloosa to the Gulf Coast to meet 20 potential suitors, 10 from the South dubbed “Country Guys” and 10 from the North and West dubbed “City Guys.”

Harris a native and resident of Robertsdale, was billed on the show as a “true cowboy,” and indeed, he has been around the cattle industry all of his life. He left Robertsdale High School his junior year to devote himself to rodeo fulltime and received a high school diploma through the Central Christian School homeschool program.

The show’s producers discovered Harris through the Professional Rodeo Association website. While they did not find a contact number for Harris, they were able to contact someone at the Summerdale Saddle Shop, who was able to put them in touch with him, Harris said.

“I really didn’t want to do it at first,” he said. “They contacted me a couple of times and I said no.”

Over 700 young men auditioned for the show, which airs every Thursday on the CMT network. While he never officially auditioned, Harris said, he was contacted one final time.

“I was told that the spot was mine if I wanted it,” he said, “so I decided to go for it.”

And, Harris said, he has no regrets about his decision, even though he was late arriving for the first day of filming. At 10:30 a.m. on the first day of scheduled filming in Point Clear, Harris was hundreds of miles away in Fort Smith, Ark., participating on the rodeo circuit.

“I was the last one to arrive on the show,” he said, getting to the set about 4:30 that afternoon. “But I think I did OK.”

Of the 20 initial suitors on the show, Harris made it to the final seven, one of two “Country Guys” to be eliminated in the fifth episode which aired Aug. 11.

“It was an emotional moment,” he said, “She was pretty upset. I really didn’t want to leave, but I knew it was for the best and I wanted to get back to the rodeo.”

While he stayed well clear of all the drama, Harris said, the tension between the two groups in the house was very real.

“Never once did I see a producer of the show initiate anything,” he said. “Those guys would fight over the time of day. It was ridiculous.”

In all, he said, aside from his connection with Grissom, he developed a lot of good friendships on the show.

“With a couple of exceptions, I was close to all of those guys and I am still in contact with a lot of them,” he said. “It was a great experience.”

As for the future, Harris said, he has yet to get back to the rodeo. There are plans in the works, but nothing he can announce officially right now. He did say, however, that he would like to explore his options in television for the immediate future.

“All I can say is that it’s going to be big,” he said. “I’m really happy with the way I was represented on the show and I want to use that to be a positive role model for kids.”