After several weeks of grueling rehearsals, show-stopping performances and nail-biting eliminations … NFL player Donald Driver and his professional dance partner Peta Murgatroyd were crowned the winners of the 14th season of “Dancing with the Stars.”
When Donald heard his name called as the winner, the football star literally stopped, dropped and rolled. (Watch below)
Driver — who says that he’s been a longtime fan of the show and has watched every season — ran around the ballroom dance floor, screaming in excitement when he found out he and his partner had beat out Katherine Jenkins and her partner Mark Ballas for the coveted mirror ball trophy. “Amazing! This is awesome!” he said, excitedly punching his fist in the sky.
On Monday night, for their first dance, Donald and Peta did the Argentine tango, and head judge Len Goodman told Driver that she loved his intensity, while the other judges told him they thought the way he told a story through dance was moving.
Driver and Murgatroyd received a score of 29 and 30 for that round.
During the second round (the freestyle round), Don and Peta two-stepped to country music, a risky move in ballroom dancing … however, the judges loved it, and judge Carrie Ann Inaba jumped on top of the table and screamed, “This is my favorite dance of the season!”
For that round, Donald and Peta earned a perfect score (30/30).
On Tuesday night’s finale, the Green Bay Packers wide receiver and his partner did a crowd-pleasing cha-cha that gave them another perfect score of 30.
“We’ve had some great footballers on the show over the years,” Len Goodman said. “My feeling is you’re the best we’ve had.”
Peta Murgatroyd said of her partner Donald Driver before they were crowned winners, “He’s the best celebrity dance partner anyone could ask for … I was lucky.”
Congrats to Donald and Peta on their win!