Tippecanoe and Tim Tebow, too

University of Kentucky football fans know Tim Tebow. He spent four years at Florida taking U. K.’s football team apart. Well, that has been happening for the last 25 years, and Tim is only 24. All he did was keep the streak alive during his four-year stay at The Swamp.

When the time came for Tebow to seek his fortune in the National Football League, there wasn’t a lot of interest in him. Why would anyone want anything to do with the first sophomore to ever win the Heisman Trophy? So he played a key role in two national championships for the Gators? And so he was the first quarterback to ever pass and run for over 20 touchdowns in the same season?

This could go on for a while because Tebow racked up an impressive number of records while in Gainesville. But none of that guarantees a spot in the NFL. There are an impressive number of Heisman trophy winners who were either undrafted (Charlie Ward, Florida State, 1993) or who put in a few years only to be cut (Gino Torretta, Miami of Florida, 1992).

And that could have easily happened to Tebow, but in his case he was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the first round in 2010. Not that anyone expected him to get the starting position right off. But Tebow came with a ready-made fan base that was always ready with the call of “Let Tim Tebow have the ball!”

And still that might not have happened had it not been for the unique set of circumstances that preceded this year’s NFL season. First of all, there was a labor dispute which ended in a lockout of the NFL players and that almost canceled the whole season. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed and after a very brief preseason, the regular season was on.

Then there was the undeniable fact that Denver was not and still is not the favorite to win this year’s Super Bowl. It was picked somewhere around the bottom of a division that is arguably the weakest in the league. And to top it all off, Tebow was somewhere around 4^th on the Bronco’s depth chart. So, guess what, Tim Tebow, no starts for you!

But then the Broncs limped out of the starting gate at 1-4 under their starting QB, Kyle Orton. I think that’s when the light came on in the Bronc’s headquarters. If the fans want Tebow, let’s give them Tebow. He’ll come out and stink up the joint. After all, we know he can’t play in the NFL coz that’s what the analysts told us. Once that’s done, we can bench him and we’ll never have to listen to “Let Tim Tebow have the ball!” anymore.

But a funny thing happened to Tebow on his way to a waiver. The 1-4 Broncs were suddenly 8-8. They even managed to back into the playoffs against the AFC champion Steelers. And because the Broncs were division champs and the Steelers were the wildcard team, this would be a home game.

And behold, a miracle occurred. Oh, sure, the Broncs beat the Steelers, in the shortest overtime game ever, in striking fashion. But Tebow also managed to render his biggest detractor, ESPN's Steven A. Smith, speechless the next day in what was truly the greatest miracle of all.