Pint-size opera singer Jackie Evancho and soul crooner Michael Grimm gave knockout performances in the season 5 finals of 'America's Got Talent.' But missteps from Fighting Gravity and Prince Poppycock may have hurt their chances of winning the competition show's million dollar prize.

Judge Piers Morgan stood by his decision to give Poppycock, an audience favorite, a strike.

"I have to be honest," Morgan told TV Squad. "I buzz when I think they can't progress any further. [Poppycock] blew it big time. He lost the humor that he had in his act. He's an OK [opera singer,] but opera is not his bag. When Jackie [Evancho] sang 'Ave Maria' it became a different kettle of fish altogether."

Morgan wasn't surprised by judge Sharon Osbourne's passionate defense of Poppycock. "She lives for Poppycock," Morgan said.

"What does it really serve?" pondered host Nick Cannon about the controversial strike. "But ... he's Piers! I thought Sharon was going to hit him."

"It was inappropriate," Osbourne declared. "Let these guys, who have worked so hard, have their moment. Yes, Piers is entitled to his opinion. But don't buzz [Poppycock.] I could see his face. It really threw him. We're going to be seeing Piers every night on CNN. Isn't that enough? Five days a week. Oh, no! It's repeated on the weekends. Enough!"

"I don't know that it was Prince Poppycock's best performance," judge Howie Mandel said. "It was toned down from the semi-finals. It wasn't as 'flashy.' That being said, in no way in my wildest dreams do I believe that he was deserving of an strike."

Ironically, Poppycock's first choice wasn't to sing the opera 'Nessun Dorma.' The performer's preferred song ('Nature Boy') wasn't approved by the song's publisher. "I really want to do it," he lamented. "I ended on opera because I started with opera. I thought it was a finale type song. I wanted to give a fairy tale ending to what's been a fairy tale journey."

As for Osbourne taking his side, Poppycock said, "I love Sharon. I wouldn't have gotten as far as I did without her support and encouragement. I felt one person was going to be buzzed [in the finals] no matter what because it creates drama. Piers was being divisive and he was creating good television."

Fighting Gravity lost points (but escaped Morgan's trigger finger) when one of the members of their group was seen when he wasn't supposed to be. (It happened towards the end of their act so perhaps Morgan didn't have time to hit the buzzer.)

Still, Gregg Curtain and Andy Farrell of the group were pleased with their performance. "It went really well," Curtain said. "We went out with a bang and we hope America likes what we did. Piers noticed a little hiccup at the end. We didn't. I guess something went wrong. We'll go back and watch the video."

"The space we have to perform isn't really that big," Farrell noted. "We have to be very precise. The mishap happened when someone got an elbow or torso [shown to the audience] that we just didn't see."

The group has Curtain to thank for being on the show. He submitted a video of the group's act to 'AGT' producers. "I was sitting at my computer at 2AM one night [and sent it in]," Curtain said. "We're excited to go on tour."

Morgan said he feels that, based on the finals, Evancho is the one to beat. "That kid is an unbelievable world class talent."

What about Grimm? "He's brilliant," Morgan said. "He's got a great career no matter what happens. He's like a young Van Morrison."

"I gave it all I could," Grimm said. "I was a bit nervous after Prince Poppycock got buzzed. I was very scared going out on stage after that."

Morgan began nodding in approval after Grimm began singing 'When a Man Loves a Woman.' "That song fits in the genre of what I do, which is soul music," Grimm said. "I dedicated it to my girlfriend, Lucie, who was in the audience. We're going on three years."

Win or lose Grimm hopes to take away a following from his 'AGT' experience. "I can walk back into the record labels and say, 'Now, I have a fan base,'" he said.

Evancho enhanced her act by adding musicians to her performance. "It felt weird," she said. "I'm used to being on stage alone. It was different, but also nice. I felt happy. [Piers] and the other judges have helped me realize my dream."