What a strange pairing: Tim Tebow is the Heisman Trophy– winning quarterback of the Florida Gators who is like the embodiment of a Friday Night Lights episode, and Nina Dobrev is the Bulgarian-born star of The Vampire Diaries. Neither of them is particularly good at lip-syncing, but it’s QB1 who seems, at the very least, to understand himself. To the replay!
Battle 1: Nina Dobrev’s “Let’s Get It On” vs. Tim Tebow’s “Take Your Time”
Tim Tebow knows who he is. After he announced his song choice, Sam Hunt’s “Take Your Time,” he said, “I also do think that’s the best way in any relationship, is to take your time. Maybe that’s just how it’s more special.” So there we have it: a half-spoken, half-sung tribute to his avowed chastity. But more than that, we really feel like he’s channeling the heartland essence of the song. (Sadly, this performance isn’t up on YouTube.) Meanwhile, the 27-year-old Nina Dobrev picked a song that she doesn’t seem to understand. She thinks this Marvin Gaye record is all hair-flips and dramatic pointing. It is not. It is about longing and sex as a spiritual connection. That said, her timing is off, and she doesn’t even ad-lib properly.
Winner: Tim Tebow, by a promise ring.
Battle 2: Nina Dobrev’s “Cheerleader” vs. Tim Tebow’s “Eye of the Tiger”
Well, this is a conceptual mess. Is Nina Dobrev a football player? Is she the cheerleader? Does anyone care? Not really. Chrissy Teigen’s cutaways were the best part of the performance.
At least Tim Tebow stuck to a single idea with his Rocky rendition. Plus, he showed us that he definitely doesn’t ever skip leg day.
Winner: Tim Tebow, by a quadricep.
Overall: In reality, we’d bench both of these performers, but the heartland spoke to us. Tim Tebow for the win.
