When HGTV’s seventh season of “Rock the Block” premieres on April 13, 2026, there will still be four duos challenged to renovate identical family homes from top to bottom, with famous judges checking in each week to determine a weekly winner. But in a new twist, the teams aren’t just made up of HGTV stars.
Rather, each of the four duos has one HGTV personality and one celebrity who’s exhibited a passion for home improvement. Among the teams is former “Good Bones” star Mina Starsiak Hawk, paired up with former NFL star Vernon Davis.
“Rock the Block” is notoriously grueling, with many past contestants expressing pure exhaustion by the end of the six week shoot. But Davis, a driven competitor whose 14 years in the NFL included winning Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos, told EntertainmentNow he had so much fun, he didn’t want “Rock the Block” to end. But that doesn’t mean the six weeks weren’t challenging.
Vernon Davis Had to Learn Techniques on the Fly on ‘Rock the Block’
Davis said he and Starsiak Hawk had a great rapport right off the bat, which was a relief since he came into the competition unsure of exactly how he’d contribute to their renovations.
“I’ve been buying homes and flipping them, renting them out to tenants,” Davis explained. “But I’ve never been in a situation where I had to go in and get dirty, like, get my hands into it. I’ve always been, like, just appointing the right people to do the job. So this was definitely a challenge for me, for sure.”
Grateful that Starsiak Hawk is “very knowledgable” and hands-on, given that she runs her own renovation business in Indianapolis, Davis acknowledged that “she did a lot of work.” But he didn’t shy away from diving in and learning on the fly.
“I had to get in there,” he smiled. “Did a lot of cutting. I did all kinds of stuff. I did drywall, painting. Whatever it entails when it comes to renovating, developing, designing, I got in there and got dirty, for sure.”
Mina Starsiak Hawk Became a ‘True Teammate,’ Vernon Davis Says of His ‘Rock the Block’ Partner
HGTVAlthough Davis had never watched a full episode of “Rock the Block” when he signed on for the show, he had watched Starsiak Hawk’s eight-season hit, “Good Bones,” and admitted that before meeting her, “I thought she was gonna be … I don’t know, just needy and feisty. But she turned out to be a very, very kind soul. She’s very nice, warm-hearted, and she became a true teammate of mine.”
Bonding quickly with Starsiak Hawk was relatively easy for Davis, who explained, “I think it’s just my background of being a special athlete. You go into these teams, you walk into these locker rooms, and you meet people for the first time (and become teammates). Just being a people person, just understanding the essence of cultivating relationships, that was pretty seamless to me because of my background, where I come from. It was like second nature.”
“We got along very, very well,” Davis said of Starsiak Hawk. “We hung out together, we had meals together, we just worked really well together.”
In addition to Davis and Starsiak Hawk, the other three “Rock the Block” teams consist of Scott McGillivray from “Renovation Resort Showdown” alongside Brooke Hogan, the interior designer daughter of late WWE star Hulk Hogan; “Battle on the Beach alum” Taniya Nayak with 98 Degrees member Drew Lachey; and former “Why the Heck Did I Buy This House?” star Kim Wolfe with fellow “Survivor” winner, Chelsea Meissner.
Davis told EntertainmentNow he bonded with them all, often going out on the town during downtime. The group does look pretty chummy in preview videos, including one of them all dancing together, led by Lachey.
Perennial host Ty Pennington is back for the new season of “Rock the Block,” too, overseeing the four new duos as they each renovate identical, newly-built homes in a Las Vegas cul-de-sac. They’ll have six weeks and $275,000 per team to transform one-level homes that include courtyards, multi-generational suites, and RV garages.
HGTV’s “Rock the Block” season seven premieres on April 13 at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
