Donald Driver – Debonair Dancer

Wow, try saying that title five times fast. Before I delve into this, I just want to go on record and say that I never thought I’d be writing a blog post relating to “Dancing with the Stars” in any way, shape or form – and I fully expect to get a decent amount of grief for it. Prior to this season, I’ve caught bits and pieces of the dance competition while channel surfing, but never once thought I’d be religiously voting for one of the competitors. All that changed when I found out Donald Driver was competing for the coveted Mirror Ball Trophy. As a loyal fan and shareholder of the Green Bay Packers, I feel obligated to tune in every week and use all my votes to help keep him on the show as long as possible, whether he was a good dancer or not.

Thankfully, Quickie has mad skills on the dance floor, so it’s really not all that surprising that he has made it to this stage of the competition. Next week, Donald and his partner, professional dancer Peta Murgatroyd, will be competing against two other teams – actor William Levy and his partner, Cheryl Burke, and singer Katherine Jenkins and her partner, Mark Ballas – in the finals. Though the judges have praised him for his form and technique week after week, he has yet to get a perfect score for one of his dances. Len, who called Double D a “big, rough, tough cream puff” after yesterday’s waltz, is being pretty stingy with his 10s this season.

Regardless of the fact that he hasn’t scored a 30 all season, he’s likely still alive thanks to the boatload of Cheeseheads who loyally call, text and go online to cast their votes for him. However, it’s not unusual for sports icons to make it to the “DWTS” finals. With Metta World Peace and Martina Navratilova being the most recent exceptions, athletes seem to have an undeniable knack for performing exquisite jives, waltzes, tangoes and sambas.

In the 14 seasons “DWTS” has been on the air, six athletes – Emmitt Smith, Apolo Anton Ohno, Helio Castroneves, Kritsi Yamaguchi, Shawn Johnson and Hines Ward – have taken home the Mirror Ball Trophy. Figure skater Evan Lysacek and former football stars Jerry Rice, Jason Taylor and Warren Sapp came in second during their respective stints on the show. And boxer Laila Ali also had success, taking third place in the spring of 2007.

Though I’m trying not to get my hopes up, following yesterday’s dances, several media outlets predicted either Maria Menounos or Donald would be hoisting the Mirror Ball Trophy next week. Maria being eliminated helps significantly. And, if you ask gamblers – yes, apparently people can and will bet on just about anything, including ballroom dancing – Quickie has the edge. Evidently, Sportsbook, the online gambling website, has the football star at 3-2 odds. If only the odds that Double D will actually still be wearing green and gold this September were that good … But, alas, I’ll save that diatribe for another day.