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BCS championship revolves around Tebow
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The story lines — almost all of them, really — revolve around him.
Did he really deserve the Heisman last year? You'll probably know by Thursday night.
Thursday he gets his wish, to throw against a Big 12 defense.
Whatever happens won't diminish his other accomplishments as a ballplayer. By the same token, let's be serious: This is the game for which he should be remembered.
What's more, if some of these NFL scouts are correct — and I hope they are not — Thursday could be the last time you see him as a starting quarterback.
That would be too bad. Oklahoma's Sam Bradford might be the better prospect — the classically-trained pocket passer — but Tebow is the more interesting one.
Both Bobby Bowden and Steve Spurrier have called him "the quarterback of the future." I don't know if he's changing the game. But he's not like anyone I've ever seen at the position.
Maybe the greatest talent a quarterback can have is the ability to take a hit. But Tebow, unlike anyone else at the position, can do more than take a shot. He can deliver one, too.
"He's 240 pounds," Florida receiver Percy Harvin once said. "So if he hits you, you're going to know it was him."
"Sort of like trying to tackle a linebacker," said Jeremy Jarmon, a defensive end from Kentucky.
"I've seen quarterbacks who can run," said Georgia coach Mark Richt. "But not with that power or toughness."
The pros might be undecided on his future as a quarterback, but his coach is not. "I can't imagine there's a better one in America," said Urban Meyer, who will soon put his star on the phone with the likes of Jack Youngblood, Jon Gruden and Bill Belichick (who's already christened Tebow "a special one") in an effort to gauge his NFL future.
In a way, Tebow represents some new twists on an old argument. Is he a quarterback or an athlete? The same was asked of Michael Vick and Vince Young and Donovan McNabb, to name a few. But in Tebow's case, the question can be addressed without the racial baggage.
He's not just another big white guy. He's like John Riggins has been blessed with an arm and a brain. And raised by missionaries. And home-schooled.
To this point, the defining moment in the Gators' season came after their somewhat improbable loss to Ole Miss. "A lot of good will come out of this," Tebow said. "You have never seen any player in the entire country play as hard as I will play the rest of the season, and you will never see someone push the rest of the team as hard as I will push everybody the rest of the season."
It wasn't a statement so much as a vow.
The Gators are nine wins without a loss since then, beating opponents by an average of 36 points a game.
And if Tebow's numbers are down in comparison with his record-breaking, Heisman-winning sophomore year, it's only because he's a better quarterback. He's accounted for fewer touchdowns (28 passing and 8 on the ground versus 32 and 23 last season), but more wins. He's come to understand — quite quickly, really, for a 21-year-old — that less is more. Last year's team was 9-4. This year the Gators are 12-1 and playing for the national championship.
Who knew missionaries had such great football genes? Then again, maybe it was to be expected. With this season in evidence, I submit that Tebow's greatest gift isn't physical. Rather, it's the ability to instill belief.
He's a preacher, not the overly smooth type, either. Anybody who's seen the now-famous shots of him with clenched fists during the Alabama game should take comfort in the fact that religion hasn't compromised his ability to shout and snarl. I'll admit some ambivalence on the subject of proselytizing players. I don't think God has much of an opinion on Texas-Ohio State or Florida-Oklahoma. Just the same, I'm obliged to commend Tebow for his missionary work. While other kids were playing video games, he was busting his ass in the Philippines.
He makes you believe.
And that's really the only question the pros need to ask. Can he do the same for guys who play for money?
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