'Dancing With the Stars' Week 6: Look ahead

Ready for a Week 6 hoedown on Dancing With the All-Stars?

A somewhat-crazy Season 15 has already given us precious moments, including judge Carrie Ann Inaba falling off her chair with excitement, suave actor Gilles Marini stripping down to his white undies, Paula Abdul guest-judging and half the stars going Gangnam Style.

Bristol Palin, the subject of a lot of chatter early on, is gone (as is her partner, USA TODAY blogger Mark Ballas, so we're trying to fill his Dancing shoes). Sexpot Pamela Anderson, race car driver Helio Castroneves and former boy banders Drew Lachey and Joey Fatone have all been sent home.

In past seasons, Halloween has been a big week for Dancing costumes, but because the show airs tonight (ABC, 8 ET/PT) with results Tuesday (ABC, 8 ET/PT), and the holiday isn't until Wednesday, our eight remaining stars will have to settle for - yeehaw! - Country Week instead and sport the usual spandex and spangles, with cowboy boots.

And honestly, isn't every night Halloween on DWTS?

Each couple will first dance to a country hit. Little Big Town will rock the stage. And the stars will also perform together in a freestyle dance as Big & Rich, along with Cowboy Troy, perform a medley of Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy) and I Play Chicken with the Train. This is the first time the show's group dance will be accompanied by musical guests.

Here's what to expect:

Going into Monday's show, Sabrina Bryan tops the leaderboard with a score of 58.5. The Disney Cheetah Girl singer and actress may be doing well now, and she could last a few more weeks, but she was sent home early in 2007 in a "shocking" upset. Although she won a fan vote to get a spot in the competition this season, it's unlikely she has enough support (and talent, sorry, Sabrina) to carry her to the end. Is this her week to exit? Could be, just for that seeming "surprise" factor since she's at the top of the heap right now.

Marini, Melissa Rycroft, Shawn Johnson and Apolo Anton Ohno are tied for second place with 56.5 each. Rycroft is spunky and spirited, and her trip to the hospital last week for a neck injury (she was fine the next day) helped her to stand out in the crowd for a minute. But the former Bachelor star isn't going to win the trophy over some of the more popular celebs. Is this her week to exit?

Marini is a heartthrob fan favorite who has been hovering toward the top of the leaderboard every week. He and pro partner Peta Murgatroyd always put on a sexy, dazzling show. They should go to the end.

Olympians usually go far on the show, too, and Johnson is partnered with the always-amazing Derek Hough. The two have great chemistry and athletic ability. They also should wind up in the finals.

Ohno is a more of a long shot because he has been toward the bottom of the scoring each week. He'll likely stay this week, but he needs to turn up the heat to win.

Emmitt Smith, (score: 56), won the mirrorball trophy when he competed in 2006. He obviously has fans, and he and pro partner Cheryl Burke know their way around the ballroom. But is his heart in it enough to win it? No matter what, the NFL star will not give up without a fight.

Kirstie Alley (52.5) has made a valiant effort to compete. She's 61 and is still pulling in scores that keep her in the mix. She also knows how to handle the show's pro bad boy, Maks Chmerkovskiy. Her humor and showmanship make up for a lot on the dance floor. Oddsmaker Johnny Avello at Wynn Las Vegas puts Kirstie as the long shot this week. It could be her time to exit, but let's hope fans want to keep her around a few weeks more.

Kelly Monaco (51.5) was the Season 1 champ in 2005, but she's in jeopardy with the lowest score going into Monday's show. The problem? While she looks great as she swirls around the floor, she never smiles, unless she's looking into partner Val Chmerkovskiy's eyes.The soap star seems to take the whole thing way too seriously.

On Tuesday's elimination show, Taylor Swift will perform and Jason Mraz is scheduled to take the stage.

And next week, ABC says we'll see the first live instant-elimination show of the series on Monday, Nov. 5, with election coverage pre-empting the results show, so it will all unfold on one night.

USA Today