George Huff

No other season 3 contestant expended more energy bouncing around the stage than Geroge Huff. And to hear him tell it, he hasn't let up one bit since his early departure from the show. Huff, whose Word Records debut Miracles was released last October, was recently nominated for three Dove Awards — gospel music's equivalent of the Grammys — and has spent the last two years performing everywhere from churches to stadiums (with the Billy Graham Crusade) to national television. (You may have spotted him during last fall's BET telethon for Hurricane Katrina victims.) That last gig held special meaning for the New Orleans native, who was displaced due to the tragedy. Huff now resides in Dallas and is hoping to make it to L.A. later this year to — like so many other former contestants — pursue acting gigs and, hopefully, record another album that'll accentuate the positive. (What, you thought George would go gloomy for his second go-round?) ''We don't have songs like Whitney Houston's 'Greatest Love of All' or Mariah Carey's 'Hero,''' he laments. ''I want to do music that will inspire the hearts of youth.'' Not that he's trying to distance himself from Idol — quite the contrary, in fact. ''I will definitely be at the finale hoppin' and skippin' and jumpin' all around,'' says Huff, a frequent guest at the Idol auditorium. Good thing...because frankly, anything less would be a letdown.