Tebow at Heart of Opinions on Religion and Sports

GoneGator    College Football, Florida Gators     Tim Tebow

A fledgling controversy is brewing down in Florida, and it revolves around Tim Tebow’s conspicuous placement of Jesus Christ at the center of his athletic pursuits (Tebow at heart of opinions on religion and sports | GatorSports.com | The Gainesville Sun | Gainesville, FL).

Let me say something right up front. I’m a Gator, and as such I am very proud of Timmy’s accomplishments as a Gator.

But I must side with my first editor as a sportswriter, Sam Cook, now a columnist for the Fort Myers News-Press, who recently wrote:

Religion — except for the ‘Hail Mary’ pass — has no place in sports. In Tebow’s case, he should play football and forget about us sinners for 3 1/2 hours every Saturday.

Amen, Sam.

The fact that you win or lose does not mean Jesus Christ, or any other mythical diety, is or is not on your side. You are not being rewarded, punished or challenged to do better.

You simply won. Or you lost.

Or, as Crash Davis said so eloquently put it, perhaps it just rained.

So leave your biblical passages in the locker room.

That goes for you too, Timmy.

P.S. It sure is interesting that the controversy is being stirred as Tebow plays the worst football of his career, isn’t it?

Fire Bowden? How About Fire Mickey?

GoneGator    College Football     Bobby Bowden, FSU, Mickey Andrews

Sure, Bobby Bowden could have spared himself all this grief by retiring gracefully a few years ago. But why isn’t once-vaunted defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews being blamed just as lustily for FSU’s slide into mediocrity? Just askin’.

Finally … Football Season is Nearly Upon Us!

GoneGator    College Football, Florida Gators    

It’s WAY too early to start making crazy declarations and prognostications regarding the upcoming season (unless your name is Lev Davidovich Wuerffel), but I just had to log on to say that I got a bit tingly today when the first USA TODAY college football coaches’ poll was released with the Florida Gators perched firmly atop the heap.

It’s almost football season! And for that we should all thank a deity of your choice, if you so believe.

This is always a big deal for me, but perhaps moreso this year because of a rough spring for two of my favorite teams. I had to watch the Detroit Red Wings lose the Stanley Cup AT HOME to the young punk Penguins. Days later, the Orlando Magic lost in five games to the Lakers.

If my Detroit Tigers weren’t doing such an admirable job holding on to first place in the AL Central, I’d have great cause for depression and anxiety.

(Funny, I never fretted about the Tigers when they sucked. I’m also a Detroit Lions fan, and their 0-16 season last year didn’t get me down. Which all makes me believe that fans of shitty teams have a much saner existence.)

The coming of college football actually hit me a couple of weeks ago when Sports Illustrated arrived in my mailbox with Tim Tebow looking like a bad ass on the cover next to the words, “Man of Many Missions.”

That made me tingle too.

Tim Tebow Sports Illustrated Cover July 27, 2009. Photo by Gary Bogdon, a former colleague from my newspaper days in Orlando.

Just look at how intense that guy is. And this appears to be during a pre-game walk-through!

I’m not sure Jesus Christ ever walked on water, but I’m pretty sure Timmy could.

Lane Kiffin’s Bones Will Be Urban’s Bread

Lev Davidovich Wuerffel    College Football     Florida Gators, Lane Kiffin, Tennessee, Urban Meyer

Oh, Lane, you just don’t know what you’re getting into, do you? If you don’t know, Mr. Kiffin is the new coach of the Tennessee Volunteers, who must have been mighty impressed by that 5-15 record he posted as coach of the Oakland Raiders.

Mr. Kiffin surely thinks he has brass balls: he’s got a hot model wife, he’s coach of a major program at 33, his dad is the great Monty Kiffin, formulator of the Tampa 2 defense and now his defensive coordinator. When ol’ Lane was hired at UT, at his first press conference he barked about looking forward to singing “Rocky Top” all night after beating Florida. Well, you know, I’m sure Urban Meyer didn’t sweat that one too much; after all, a new coach needs to fire up the faithful a bit. But Meyer’s a pretty intense and bitter motherfucker, and I suspect Urban filed that one away to wave like a red cape in front of Tim Tebow on September 19, the day the Gators hook up with the Vols in the Swamp. But still, no real biggie.

But that wasn’t enough for Lane. This morning, in front of a crowd of UT boosters, he suggested that a phone call that Meyer made during the open contact period of recruiting to former Gator commitment Nu’Keese Richardson while Keese was visiting with UT coaches was a recruiting violation. (It’s not). Quoth Lane: “I love the fact that Urban had to cheat and still didn’t get him.”

After being called out by UF Athletic Director Jeremy Foley for stating a falsehood and slandering Meyer, and after being formally reprimanded by SEC kingpin Mike Slive, Kiffin apologized this evening.

But the damage has been done.

A little advice from a Gator, Lane: don’t fuck with Urban. He’s going to want to beat you badly enough without you poking at him. But I’m guessing that you just rocketed to the top of his list of things to do. And I can picture Timmy and Brandon Spikes pushing each other through bench press reps or stadium repeats by hollering your name at one another. Seriously, dude, you just entered the SEC East: the nastiest shark tank of hyper-driven little fascist coaches ever assembled. Spurrier, Richt, and Meyer are just waiting to torch your ass, and Rich Brooks and Bobby Johnson aren’t slouches. And keep in mind that the Great Satan, Nick Saban, and his ridiculous recruiting classes, are on your annual schedule, too.

I’m sure your players will appreciate your big mouth when Tebow is still throwing deep routes with 90 seconds left in a 73-3 game. And one last suggestion: keep Nu’Keese off the field if you want him to be available past his second college game.

… It’s Great To Be A Florida Gator!

GoneGator    College Football, Florida Gators    

Ahmad Black’s steal of an interception. Riley Cooper in his swan song before heading to pro baseball. Percy Harvin at only 90 percent(!). Aaron Hernandez on shuttle passes. Big-game receiver David Nelson. Tim Tebow being Tim Tebow. And the SEC’s BEST DEFENSE. Gators rule yet again! Thank you Urban Meyer!

… Screw You Sooners! Gators Over Oklahoma

GoneGator    College Football, Florida Gators, Prognostication    

I’ve consulted with friends, family, seers, and most importantly my rabbit hound Big Boy, and have concluded that Florida will win big tonight over Oklahoma. Let’s call it a 10-point margin with an O/U of 75. Go Gators!

Is Tyrod Taylor Following in Marcus Vick’s Footsteps?

GoneGator    College Football     Frank Beamer, Jim Weaver, Marcus Vick, Tyrod Taylor, Virginia Tech

Virginia Tech sophomore QB Tyrod Taylor is an unquestionable talent. But he’s also an undeniable prick on the field, witnessed at least three times during the Orange Bowl:

• after a sideline run when he pushed the ball in his tackler’s face;
• at the end of his touchdown run when he tucked his hand behind his helmet as he pushed the ball across the goal line, dancing inside the pylon; and
• during a post-game celebration pose — leaning back, arms crossed, head bobbing.

Those were not isolated incidents. Throughout his two seasons, Tyrod — the supposed team-first player — has shown an oh-so-subtle flair for taunts and showboating in almost every game in which he appears. Subtle, because he taunts in a hit-and-run style that can go unnoticed. Methinks he gets away with it because of his innocent, baby face — and his 13-2 record as a starter.

But the Hokies should be embarrassed. And no one moreso than coach Frank Beamer.

What happened to Beamer’s get-tough policy? In the wake of the infamous Marcus Vick chest stomp in 2005 and other incidents that were tarnishing the Hokies’ program, Beamer announced before the 2006 season a set of escalating penalties for unsportsmanlike play.

And don’t forget this quote from Virginia Tech AD Jim Weaver in January 2006 after he (not Beamer) dismissed Vick from the program:

“Additionally, let me make it clear, to everyone, that Virginia Tech, myself and Head Coach Frank Beamer; will never put a single player above the integrity of this program or this great University. We owe that much to the players of the past who have helped put Virginia Tech on the map, and to the thousands of Tech fans who take pride in this program.”

But Beamer and Weaver seem to be turning a blind eye to Tyrod’s antics.

(Or am I the only one who sees this? Refs did not throw a flag on either of the Orange Bowl incidents I saw, TV commentators said nothing, and Hokie fans I know are silent.)

Evidently, Beamer either cannot discipline Taylor, or is afraid to. And because of that, I’m convinced that sooner or later, Tyrod is going to have his chest-stomping moment and prove himself to be just another Hampton Roads punk like the Vick brothers before him.

Tyrod, prove me wrong. Stop the posing and the taunting. Don’t waste your talent. Just play ball.

And Frank, grow a pair and do something about this before Taylor revives unfair talk of VT being Thug U.

Bowl Preseason Wasn’t Pretty

GoneGator    College Football, Prognostication    

The bowl “preseason” was not kind to me — I correctly picked the winner in only 3 of 8 games (though I am quite proud of my Notre Dame pick). The real games start today with both FSU and Miami trying to kick off their 2009 campaigns in style. I hope they do; I picked them both.

Let’s Go Bowling!

GoneGator    College Football, Prognostication, Uncategorized    

I know you’ve been anxiously anticipating my bowl picks, so without further delay, here they are — with the bowls’ older, traditional names where at all possible. Screw the sponsors.

Tebow’s Plight Recalls a Tale of Heismans Past

GoneGator    College Football, Florida Gators, Sports     Florida Gators, Heisman, Oklahoma Sooners, Peyton Manning, Sam Bradford, SEC, Tennessee, Tim Tebow

That Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford won the Heisman Trophy last night came as no surprise to me. The second consecutive sophomore to win the bronze prize had unbelievable numbers for the BCS Championship Game-bound Sooners, and is a very deserving winner.

But two things did surprise me in the final Heisman tally:

• Florida quarterback Tim Tebow garnered the most first-place votes (309 to Bradford’s 300).
• Tebow was not named on 17 percent of the 904 ballots that were tabulated.

Are you kidding me? There are 153 Heisman voters who did not think Tebow was one of the top three players in college football in 2008?

Well, let me share a little story with you. From 1993 through 2002, I was fortunate to be a Heisman Trophy elector as a sports journalist. And at the end of the 1997 season, I left a noteworthy name off my ballot — that of Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning. He ended up finishing second to Michigan’s Charles Woodson.

How, you might ask, could I leave such a great quarterback off my ballot then, but criticize those who left Tebow off this year?

Very simple. Peyton Manning never beat Florida.

Manning set 42 NCAA, SEC or school records in four seasons in Knoxville. He led the Vols to the 1997 SEC title, an 11-1 regular season and a spot in the Orange Bowl de facto national championship game (which they lost to Nebraska). And Manning remains the all-time winningest SEC quarterback with a record of 39-5.

But four of those five career SEC losses came to the Gators, by a combined score of 161-86.

Had Manning beaten Florida in ’97, there is no doubt the Heisman (including my vote) would have been his. But the Gators handled Manning in a 33-20 victory over Tennessee. And with that, I decided I could not include Manning on my ballot regardless of how the rest of the season went.

I made a statement. And I took heat from fellow Southern college football writers when I revealed my intentions to those “Heisman watcher” media polls.

To this day, I have no regrets. But those who left Tebow off their ballots this year should.

Unlike Manning, Tebow has beaten all of Florida’s rivals. After the Gators’ lone loss this season, 31-30 to Ole Miss, Tebow vowed to work harder, play harder and push harder the rest of the way. The results: In the final nine games, Tebow led the nation in passing efficiency — completing 64.5 percent of his passes for 1,707 yards, 22 touchdowns and 2 interceptions — while rushing for 439 yards and 10 touchdowns. Florida went 9-0, beat No. 1 Alabama for the SEC title, and earned a spot opposite Bradford’s Sooners in the BCS title game.

What do you think? Was I crazy or justified to leave Manning off my ’97 ballot?

And can you justify anyone dissing Tebow in 2008?