Evidently, three Super Bowl titles were not enough for Emmitt Smith. The NFL all-time rushing yards leader ran away with the fan vote on last night’s Dancing with the Stars finale, as well.
Smith and Mario Lopez received identical scores on Tuesday night’s show, but supporters pushed the running back over the top in the end, as he celebrated with professional dance partner Cheryl Burke.
“I am so proud of this trophy and I am proud to share it with Cheryl,” Smith said. “We worked our tails off.”
“Emmitt embodied what this competition is all about,” season 3 contestant and Paris Hilton-hater Shanna Moakler said. “He deserved to win. Absolutely.”
Other participants that had been kicked off earlier also weighed in.
“I don’t think you could go wrong with either of these guys,” Jerry Springer said. “They both had identical scores so it was who had the more compelling story and Emmitt’s was the great American story. You saw his growth throughout the process and that’s the great American story. That’s the magic of this show.”
For Karina Smirnoff, sadly, the magic felt like pure, unadulterated sadness. Tears streamed down her face as she reluctantly talked to reporters and the usually jovial Lopez tried to console her.
“Apparently world-class dancing wasn’t enough. That wasn’t the criteria it was based on,” Lopez said to People magazine. “I don’t really care about the trophy. I just wanted to win for Karina. She is honestly the best dancer in the world. No disrespect to the other girls on this show, but they don’t hold a candle to her.”
And with that, Slater and his date went to watch the Screech sex tape in order to feel better about themselves.
Meanwhile, Sara Evans attended the finale. For those somehow unaware, Evans withdrew from the competition after filing for divorce from political consultant Craig Schleske, her husband of 13 years.
“She was very relaxed, very happy to be here. Her kids are here and they are having a lot of fun. Her son Avery was doing some moves on the dance floor during rehearsals yesterday.” dancer Louis Van Amstel said.