Times guest blogger Hines Ward discusses Week 2 on ‘Dancing With the Stars’
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The Times is pleased to have Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward guest-blogging for us while he competes on ‘Dancing With the Stars.’ Every Wednesday, Ward, a Super Bowl MVP and two-time Super Bowl champion, will answer a few questions from Fabulous Forum editor Houston Mitchell and give some insight into the competition. Here are Ward’s thoughts about Week 2, which he offered via email.
Q: This week was the first elimination week. Give people at home a sense of what it is like to be standing on that stage waiting to find out if you are safe or in jeopardy.
It’s nerve-wracking. I didn’t think it would be that bad, but when those lights dim and that serious music comes on, you are just hoping your name is not called as being the one with the lowest score. I was fortunate enough this time to continue on and it’s a good feeling. I really want to go all the way to the end and win this thing.
Q: Are any of your teammates giving you a hard time (good-naturedly) about appearing on the show?
Of course. At first I got a bunch of texts from my teammates teasing me about being on a dancing show. And I was worried about having to wear costumes that are too tight and too colorful and all because I try to be very fashion conscious. But I think I earned their respect after these first two performances and fortunately was able to wear outfits that weren’t too off the wall. I owe a lot to my partner, Kym. She is a great coach and choreographer. My first week I had Franco Harris, Mel Blount and Jerome Bettis at the show. This week my teammate Rashard Mendenhall came. And so far they all thought I did pretty well so I guess they don’t think my dancing is that bad.
Q: If you win the Mirror Ball trophy, will you consider this as the seventh Super Bowl trophy for Steeler Nation? I really don’t think you can compare the Mirror Ball trophy to the Lombardi because they both stand for two totally different things. But I am going to try to win the Mirror Ball trophy just as hard as I would the Lombardi. I feel bad that we couldn’t bring our third Super Bowl championship back to the city of Pittsburgh so I really want to bring our fans back their first Mirror Ball trophy and represent the Steel City well. I want to become the first active NFL player to win it and make all of Steeler Nation proud.
Q: Should DWTS have a special ‘Football Edition’ and bring back all the NFL players and compete for the Mirror Ball? And who would win?
I would love to see an all NFL edition of players on DWTS. To compete against Emmitt [Smith], Jerry Rice, Jason Taylor, Chad [Ocho Cinco] and big Warren Sapp would be an honor. As far as who will win, I guess we’ll have to wait and see if or when it happens. Right now, I am just concentrating on trying to win this season’s competition. It’s not gonna be easy. There are a lot of great competitors as you can tell by these first two performances.
Besides being a Super Bowl MVP, Hines Ward is the founder of the Hines Ward Helping Hands Foundation, which focuses on improving literacy among children and provides programs and services to better equip them for achieving and handling success in life.
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