NFL Tebow: Senior Bowl a Strategic Call

One of the most interesting things in moving along from College Tebow to NFL Tebow is that things start to move away from the Florida beat folks -- Volin, Fowler, Goodman, English, Long... I love 'em all -- and move to the NFL reporters.

The Miami Herald's Jeff Darlington has a nicely nuanced explanation of how and why Tim Tebow ended up committing to play in the Senior Bowl, and it has a lot to do with his new agent, Jimmy Sexton:

You see, Sexton also represents Dolphins coach Tony Sparano and executive vice president of football operations Bill Parcells. That’s the same staff, of course, that created the Wildcat offense. Although less popular, it’s also the same staff that created an NFL-type spread offense that would probably be better suited for Tebow than Pat White.

So not only are you getting a coaching staff that understands how to prepare a player for those types of packages, you’re also going to get a staff far less likely to put Tebow in any jeopardizing situations because of their ties to Sexton.

Ultimately, it's going to be hard for Sexton to keep Tebow from getting dinged by scouts -- they are already inclined to ding him, if only because of the cognitive dissonance from having their recommendations largely be ignored.

But putting Tebow with sympatico coaches allows Team Tebow to live up to Tebow's insistence that he won't be intimidated to perform for the NFL scouts, while mitigating as much of the unknown as possible. You want to have as much of the draft process in your hands as you can.

NFL Tebow: Carroll in Seattle Shakes Up Draft Priorities?

There are a handful of NFL teams who had been widely considered to be amenable to drafting Tim Tebow in the 1st round of the 2010 NFL Draft: Jaguars, Bills, Redskins, Patriots, Seahawks.

I think we can scratch Seattle off the list. Despite having two 1st-round picks, they have a new head coach (and decision-maker), Pete Carroll, and Tebow doesn't fit Carroll's model for QBs.

Consider: Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart, Matt Cassel, Mark Sanchez, Matt Barkley. Technically perfect, accurate, strong-arm QBs who play in a prototype "pro-style" set.

Given that Matt Hasselbeck has a few years left in him and that there will be plenty of Carroll-style QBs available in the draft in coming years -- including Barkley in 2012 -- I don't see Carroll using one of those two 1st round picks on Tebow.

There could be reverberations: Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio has been mentioned as a possible successor to Carroll. Beyond the fact that it would be a terrible move for USC (and give Jags fans some hope), it is unlikely this would impact whether or not the team drafts Tebow -- Tebow has always been a bit of an irrational pick for the team, and a new coach won't change that.

The Bills are still looking for a coach -- this should, in theory, impact whether the team is interested.

In other recent coaching changes, I find it hard to believe that Mike Shanahan's first pick as head of the Redskins will be on Tebow in the Top 5 of the draft.

All signs continue to point to Tebow going to the Jaguars at No. 10 or No. 11.

Tim Tebow's Agent: Jimmy Sexton

Tim Tebow has selected his agent: Jimmy Sexton.

Sexton's biggest client is Philip Rivers -- not a bad model to emulate. Per Fowler, Sexton also reps some of the SEC's top coaches: Saban, Kiffin, Spurrier, Nutt.

As I was mentioning in yesterday's post, Sexton will have a unique challenge: Scouts will grade Tebow as a 2nd-rounder; the reality is that he will be a 1st-rounder.

Sexton will have at least a few teams picking in the 1st round who will have interest in Tebow. Among the more popular names: The Redskins, the Bills, the Pats and -- of course -- the Jags.

(I would actually say that Pete Carroll becoming president and coach of the Seahawks almost assuredly spikes any chance the Seahawks would use either of their 1st-round picks on Tebow.)

If there will be plenty of interest in Tebow in the 1st round, Sexton's biggest challenge will be to find the right FIT for Tebow -- the team that is willing to invest in developing him into a full-time QB, while also comfortable enough to deploy him creatively in the short term.

While an agent's incentive is almost always to maximize value for their clients, in this case I think that it is critical that Sexton maxmize fit.

And, for his part, I hope that Tebow tells his agent that he absolutely will not hold out, even if it means missing out on a few dollars. Sign quickly, and get to work.

Tebow will be in a unique position of earning so much money from endorsements that a marginal couple hundred thousand (or even million) dollars shouldn't matter, relative to signing and getting his pro development started, earning a ton of cred with fans in the process.

Tim Tebow To Play In Senior Bowl

Tim Tebow WILL play in the Senior Bowl at the end of the month, according to an ESPN.com report.

This is a bit of a surprise to me -- but certainly consistent with what Tebow has been saying that he won't duck the chance to perform in front of NFL coaches.

I say: Bring it on. He instantly becomes the biggest story of the game in Mobile.

Tebow will be under intense scrutiny, but he will also get a ton of credit for actually playing in the game, not shying away.

(UPDATE: Per Andreu in the Sun, Tebow will play for the South team, which will be coached by the Miami Dolphins coaching staff. I'm sure Tebow wants to play in "pro-style" sets, but if it's the Dolphins coaches, you can be sure they will line him up in some variation of the Wildcat.)

NFL Tebow: Theory vs. Reality

Been sitting on this CBSSports.com column by Clark Judge about NFL scouts' problem with Tim Tebow for a few days, and I just want to make a few points:

*One of the most fascinating things -- if not THE most fascinating things -- about Tim Tebow's draft status is that he uniquely defies traditional scouting reports.

Scouts and draftniks pinpoint problems with his mechanics, then grade him out as no better than a 2nd-round pick, maybe 3rd.

And yet, in what I'm quite sure is to their consternation, Tebow is going to be a 1st-round pick. Probably a top-half-of-the-1st pick, possibly a Top 10 pick overall.

This must drive the scouts and draftniks bonkers, if for no other reason than it creates a cognitive dissonance: Their opinions are dismissed.

And if their opinions can be so easily dismissed -- whether an owner loves Tebow's attitude or is sure he's a "winner" or likes his potential as a superback or just sees marketing appeal -- what good are they?

I have said this for months: It is going to be hilarious to see the draftniks have to adjust their rigorous rankings and grades to fit the reality of their mock draft lists.

Consider that for a second: Scouts like to claim that Tebow's appeal is qualitative, but the analysis of the tape shows the reality.

When in fact: The scouts' analysis is the vapid theory, and Tebow's draft status is the only reality that matters.

And so even though a McShay or Kiper has Tebow graded -- in their expert analysis -- as a 2nd-round talent, they will have to list him in the mock-draft Top 10.

Why? Because they don't want their mock drafts to be wrong. That, more than Tebow's projected struggles as a pro, is considered a greater test of their value as draftniks than their scouting.

And it's not the mere optics of mock-draft listings and results: Tebow actually will be a 1st-round pick. Again: Imagine the cognitive dissonance the draftniks have to navigate.

The point is this: Scouts can say that Tebow doesn't grade out as a 1st-rounder, but that is entirely inconsequential.

All that matters is if he is a 1st-rounder, period. Is a team reaching? Who cares? At least one team will value him enough -- for whatever reason -- to take him in the 1st round.

And probably high in the 1st round.

No matter what the scouts tell them.

That is the disconnect between the draftniks' theory and the reality of the draft.

Will Tebow have to work on his mechanics? Of course! No one disputes this. And Tebow himself has said he'll work as hard as he can at the position -- do you doubt him?

Short of Tebow stubbornly believing that he actually is perfectly capable as an NFL QB right now, as-is (which he has never said), there is no reason to believe he can't -- with appropriate NFL coaching -- will himself to get better. No one will work harder at it.

Frankly, I'm surprised that more scouts haven't hopped on the Kiper/McShay bandwagon and suggested that Tebow absolutely has a future as an NFL player, but only as an unprecedentedly versatile QB-RB-TE "superback" (which will take a confident and innovative coach).

The scouts Judge talks to seem to think that in a year, Tebow could actually develop into a full-time NFL QB. (How many QBs start their rookie year anyway? Hell, Matt Leinart has been a pro for four years and still isn't very good.)

Anyway, I just wanted to note that Tim Tebow's mechanics may bother scouts, and they may not give him a 1st-round grade.

But that won't keep him from being a 1st-round pick.

I'm with Meyer: I think that Tebow needs the right coach and the right system. To start, right out of the gate, he can be a contributor as this novel QB-RB-TE "superback" hybrid. But at the same time, he can be working on his mechanics, footwork, reads -- a few years later, he will be ready to start.

If the team that drafts him isn't willing to give him that innovative use or that intensive training and he ends up a quote-unquote "bust," the nano-second he is released, Bill Belichick will sign him and unleash his potential.

Belichick will remind you to just ask the scouts who graded Tom Brady an unremarkable 6th-rounder.

Tim Tebow Leads Florida to No. 3 Ranking

Add one more accomplishment to the list for Tim Tebow's career:

In Tebow's four years, Florida was the only team to finish in the Top 3 three times.

2006: No. 1, obviously.
2008: No. 1, obviously.
2009: No. 3.

It is worth noting that Florida finished behind Texas, presumably because Texas gave Alabama a tougher game than Florida (despite not having their QB). I'm not sure this is fair:

Playing Florida, Alabama was as up (and on) as I've ever seen a team for a game.

Playing Texas, Alabama was in "do what's necessary to win," which explains the way Saban played not to lose from halftime onward (and almost blew it -- don't think that last-minute TD wasn't about avoiding the post-game storyline being "Texas almost won," rather than "Alabama wins decisively.")

It is also worth noting that Florida edged out unbeaten Boise State, which finished 4th. Boise State fans will rightfully be very upset by this. I will say that Florida's position ahead of Boise before the bowls started probably helped, as did a pre-bowl No. 5 Florida absolutely crushing pre-bowl No. 3 Cincinnati. (Boise barely beat pre-bowl No. 4 TCU.)

Lastly, it's important to say this:

For a team with "championship or bust" expectations, the difference between "14-0" and "13-1" is the widest gap in the world. It is nominal solace that Florida's only loss was to the No. 1 team (and that the loss was decisive and not because Tim Tebow was injured on the 1st series).

But 13-1 is not 14-0. And No. 3 is not No. 1.

As with the Sugar Bowl, if you couldn't have a national championship, 13-1 and a No. 3 (arguably No. 2) ranking are the next-best (if distant next-best) thing.

NFL Tebow: Agent, Senior Bowls, Bills?

Is Tim Tebow picking an agent this week? That's the word from Tim Tebow's brother, Robby (via OS's Jeremy Fowler).

Presumably under guidance from an agent -- I'm betting Tom Condon -- Tebow is also going to decide if he's going to play in the Senior Bowl or East-West Shrine games.

I'm betting no on both. Tebow's agent will want his public displays to be more tightly controlled, and it's not like playing or not playing in those games will not impact his draft status -- at all.

That's a good segue: Fowler lists his Top 5 teams most likely to draft Tebow -- four are in the Top 11, in which case playing in those showcases REALLY can't help.

5. Seahawks
4. Redskins
3. Pats
2. Jaguars
1. Bills

Fowler's assumption for all but the Pats is that Tebow can and will eventually be a starting QB in the NFL. I'm not sold on that yet -- I think he absolutely could be, with a couple years of training. But he is just as likely to spend his first few years as some kind of all-purpose "superback" that takes the Wildcat QB role and evolves it into something new and more potent.

The biggest issue is whether the Redskins (4th), the Seahawks (6th) or the Bills (9th) would be willing to use a Top 10 1st-round pick on a player who is possibly a starting QB down the road or possibly some kind of part-timeQB/full-time superback (if the coach has the courage and creativity to use him that way). The Jags are a complete outlier, strategically. And the Patriots, picking in the late 20s, would absolutely grab Tebow if he fell that far.

To Fowler's point that the Bills are the most likely destination, my question is this: Has Tebow ever played in game temperatures less than 50 degrees? How about 30? How about in the snow, like we saw last weekend? How about in the winds that make throwing in Buffalo a hassle? Serious factors.

Isn't all this speculation more fun than "Play!" or "Don't Play!" against LSU?

Could Tim Tebow Host Saturday Night Live?

When I heard that Saturday Night Live was using Charles Barkley as a host, my first reaction was wondering whether they first tried to get Tim Tebow, now that he's eligible for something like that. He is certainly a big enough star in the sports world, and there's plenty of material for sketches. (To say the least -- I mean, the bris sketch writes itself.) I wonder if SNL inquired into Tebow's availability.

Dr. Phil Is a BIG Tebow Fan

Dedicated Tebow-watchers have seen a lot of things over the years, but new territory was staked out on Monday: Dr. Phil -- yes, THE Dr. Phil -- wrote a blog post about Tebow.

Needless to say, Dr. Phil is a big fan:

I cannot tell you how outraged I get when I read some of the snarky sportswriters and hear sportscasters who make fun of Tebow for being such a goody-two shoes guy. Come on, can’t we just celebrate someone who does it right? Have we become that ridiculously cynical as a society that the only thing that sells is scandal, to the point that parts of the media actually resent a genuinely good guy?

I totally agree -- most sports columnists who bash Tebow (a) don't get it, (b) are almost assuredly doing it to be contrarian, and (c) really are helplessly cynical, which isn't a good thing.

Then the Dr. gets prescriptive:

Please, all you parents who are looking for a role model for your children, I recommend that you introduce them to the world of Tim Tebow. He’s really a role model for all of us.

I think what's key here is that parents -- and I am the parent of two young boys -- takeaway the more secular or humanistic values of Tebow: Hard work, commitment, leadership, relationships.

To me, that's where his real value as a role model lies. Obviously, Tebow has his specific ways he applies those things, both on and off the field. But they are essential characteristics or values for anyone who wants to be well-adjusted and make a contribution.

But, really: It was surreal to read that post from Dr. Phil about Tebow. Here's betting that Tebow makes an appearance on the Dr. Phil Show sometime before the NFL Draft.

End of Tebow Era: Last Point, About Joy

If there was one single most remarkable thing about the Sugar Bowl -- including Tim Tebow's performance in it -- it was the sense of free-wheeling joy that the team played with.

Compare that with the burden of perfection that Tim Tebow, Urban Meyer and the entire team was under from the day that Tebow announced he was returning for his senior year, onward.

"Championship or Failure" was the operating principle -- I was no small proponent and propagator of it.

At its best, it represented to me the extremely rare chance for a singularly great team to fulfill its potential.

At its worst, the mindset stripped all the joy from the season -- every week was "win or else." I really didn't care about how they did it, except as an indicator of their chance of winning again.

But you could see the pressure of "Title or Bust" wear on the team. It wore on the fans. It wore on the media. It obviously wore on Urban Meyer. It wore on Tim Tebow.

It is totally reasonable for Tebow to say that the season was "about relationships, not championships," but there is a reason he was crying on the sidelines in Atlanta.

Those tears -- combined with Meyer's health issues -- were the byproduct of "Title or Fail."

Then consider its antecedents, its antidotes: Start with the Swamp finale. Bookend that with the Sugar Bowl. You saw the joy again.

Not winning the national championship was a huge disappointment -- as superior as Alabama appeared to be, I will always consider the season to be one of unfulfilled potential.

If nothing but a national championship would be sufficient, then we all -- Tebow, Meyer, fans, media -- got the next-best thing in the Sugar Bowl:

We saw Tebow playing with joy. We saw his teammates playing with joy. We saw fans celebrating with joy.

It's not an insubstantial thing, and as I think about the lessons from this year, it isn't a bad one to walk away with.

End of Tebow Era: How To Sum It All Up?

And so the Tebow Era is over for the University of Florida. And, make no mistake, the back half of the Aughts will be remembered as the "Tebow Era."

In addition to covering that era here, all season long I have been filing weekly columns over at Yahoo's Dr. Saturday college football blog. Yesterday, I published my final thoughts, trying to put Tebow's career into perspective:

In this realm, it is finished, and the debate over Tebow's place among the all-time greats can spread among the people as he ascends to the NFL. In the college game, his legacy comes back to two great themes:

Winning. Immortality in sports is most often based on championships. From Tebow's small but critical role in Florida's 2006 national title to his MVP prominence en route to the 2008 national title, debates can be won simply by saying "two national titles, winningest senior class in SEC history." Tebow's over-the-top cheerleading and earnest promise-making both stem from a core competitiveness that has translated into championships.

Mythology. There have been plenty of winners in college football. But few circumcise babies while preaching in prisons while lighting up Google while taming TMZ while saving themselves for marriage while getting concussions while making promises while crying on the sidelines while delivering jump-passes while breaking hallowed records. It is the sheer, relentless volume of these details, repeated ad nauseam, that combined to make Tebow feel larger-than-life.

There will almost certainly be players who win as or more prolifically than Tebow. What seems improbable is that any winning player will layer in the mythical components in the same depth or breadth that he has at this level, where even the best players are only just growing into their persona and the window for influence and fame is so fleeting. Even more than his promise as a player, the myth of Tebow's outsized personality made him a star before he made his first career start.

Will there ever be another Tebow? If Tebow himself has been motivated to inspire, as much as anything else he has done on the field, then you would hope so:

Roll back the clock to New Year's Day 2000: Tebow was 12 years old. Not only had you never heard of him, but you were at least another five or six years from ever hearing of him.

While the circumstances of Tebow's ascension were, in part, a perfect storm of physical gifts, personality, optimized coaching/strategy and evolving media landscape, it would be hubris to suggest Tebow's accomplishment as an amateur can never be topped.

But he leaves behind less a legacy than a benchmark, not just of accomplishment and competitiveness, but also of leadership and commitment. On New Year's Day 2010, as Tebow ran wild through Cincinnati, somewhere there was a kid out there falling off his bike for the hundredth time who will be inspired to top it.

See the whole thing here.

NFL Tebow: The Next Derek Anderson?

Part of the analysis of Tim Tebow as an NFL QB -- even a full-time NFL QB, as opposed to a specialist -- is trying to find comparisons to current or post NFL QBs. Short of the "Wildcat QB" stuff, I personally like Allen Barra's comparison of Tebow to Donovan McNabb.

But Jeff Risdon at RealGM.com offered up another interesting comp: Derek Anderson.

I think the Sugar Bowl is a good microcosm off all things good and bad. Tebow is clearly a rare leader, a positive force both on the field and in the locker room. He has the requisite arm strength, better than average. Tebow is physically tough and hard to tackle, moves well, and can make plays with his legs. His short-area accuracy is very good. Those are all attributes of a very good starting NFL quarterback.

But there are warts too, and these are the ones that his most fervent supporters don't like to understand. Yes, he completed 31 of 35 against Cincinnati's woefully overmatched secondary, but I saw a lot of accuracy issues. Tebow makes his receivers work far too often to make the catch; the ball is rarely right where it needs to be, it's always a couple feet high or behind where a great thrower would put it. It doesn't show up so much on short throws, where he can rocket the ball nicely, as he showed on the 7-yarder to Aaron Hernandez for a touchdown. It shows when Tebow works the deeper realms and the perimeter of the field. The ball is catchable, but the receiver either has to break stride or jump up or turn back and reach. When paired with Tebow's elongated, slow delivery, that turns into Derek Anderson in the NFL. And that's actually who I see most in Tim Tebow as a passer: Derek Anderson, a streaky, fearless slinger who can be great in short stretches, but stares down his receiver too readily, doesn't progress through his reads quickly, and almost never hits the inner circle of the bullseye. Tebow obviously has a lot more to offer as a runner, where I see him akin to a younger Daunte Culpepper: physical, strong, long-striding with good vision but not especially fast or quick.

He goes on to offer the projection of late 2nd/early 3rd, with the standard (and continually remarkable) caveat that a team could easily reach to take him higher.

NFL Tebow: Peter King Says Early 2nd

From today's Monday Morning Quarterback from Peter King:

I think I've said it before about Tim Tebow and I'll say it again: The NFL team that can't find a spot for Tebow to help it win games is close-minded. I don't know if he can be an every-down quarterback, but I do know 28 teams passed on Joe Montana through two rounds because he was too small, 31 teams passed on Tom Brady through five rounds because he was just another guy, and Kurt Warner went undrafted and twice went knocking on doors as an unwanted free-agent even after he won a Super Bowl in the NFL. Every GM didn't go to Harvard. Every personnel czar is not Ron Wolf. What I do know is if I ran a team, and I've got the 40th pick in the draft, and Tebow's there, I pick him without hesitation and pass the card in as, "Tim Tebow, football player, Florida.'' And I pop the champagne corks.

Here is what King leaves hanging: 40th? Fine. But he's hardly being generous or unconventional in his thinking. Even the Tebow Draft Denialists think he'll go in the 2nd round.

But what about 10th? Or 20th? Or 30th? King's "40th" point makes it sound like he doesn't think that Tebow is worth picking earlier than the early 2nd round -- and certainly not the 1st round. Doesn't that undercut his entire preceding argument?

King is one of the folks who will have to reconcile their own personal evaluation -- Tebow as 2nd-rounder -- with the reality that there is a team that will take him in the 1st round, possibly the top half of the 1st round, possibly the Top 10.

I do, however, completely agree with his larger point: "The NFL team that can't find a spot for Tebow to help it win games is close-minded."

NFL Tebow: Draft Top 20 Order Set(Can Tim Tebow Go In The Top 20?)

The order of the Top 20 of the 2010 NFL Draft is set (with a few minor coin-toss clarifications yet to be made), and we can start to consider if Tim Tebow may get drafted in the first round -- and, if so, where.

Let's start with this: If the speculation is true that the Jaguars are going to take Tebow no matter what, he could go in the Top 10, no later than No. 11.

*The Rams won't take him first. Period.

*The Lions just drafted Stafford, and the Bucs just drafted Freeman.

*I could see the Redskins being unpredictable (and marketing-savvy) enough to take Tebow -- but that won't happen at No. 4.

*KC just signed Matt Cassel.

*The Seahawks need a QB, but will take a West Coast offense-friendly QB like Bradford or Clausen.

*Even with their mess at QB, no way the Browns will take Tebow.

*Oakland at 8 is fascinating, if only because Al Davis is insane.

*The Bills' Jim Kelly endorsed the team taking Tebow, but even beyond questions about Tebow's fit as a starting QB or questions about a team as directionless as Buffalo, at No. 9, he is unlikely.

*Even if the Bears flip into No. 10, they just spent a fortune to get Jay Cutler -- although I could see a populist surge for the team to take a "Chicago-style" player like Tebow. It won't happen.

And then all eyes on Jacksonville at 11.

1. St. Louis (1-15)
2. Detroit (2-14)
3. Tampa Bay (3-13)
4. Washington (4-12)
5. Kansas City (4-12)
6. Seattle (5-11)
7. Cleveland (5-11)
8. Oakland (5-11)
9. Buffalo (6-10)
10/11. Chicago (7-9)* (Traded to DEN)
10/11. Jacksonville (7-9)*
12. Miami (7-9)
13. San Francisco (8-8)
14. Denver (8-8)(Traded to SEA)
15. New York Giants (8-8)
16/17. Carolina (8-8)* (Traded to SF)
16/17. Tennessee (8-8)*
18. Pittsburgh (9-7)
19/20. Atlanta (9-7)*
19/20. Houston (9-7)*

That analysis above was just a taste. I will dig much deeper into every team's motivation for drafting Tebow as the pre-draft craziness progresses.

The rebuilding teams with little chance of making the playoffs next year or in the future will be leery of taking Tebow -- they will almost assuredly have areas of greater need than what Tebow will solve. The near-playoff teams that are just a few tweaks away will also be looking to fill a specific need, rather than willing to embrace uncertainty and creativity with Tebow. The remaining 12 teams -- all in the playoffs this season -- have their own motivations.

UPDATE: Would you know it? The PBP's intrepid Ben Volin beat me to this. That'll teach me to write a post in the early morning, then hold it until the mid-afternoon. He and I can quibble, but we mostly agree. I think that there's less of a chance that Tebow goes before the Jags at 10/11 than Volin does -- he's much more bullish on Tebow to Buffalo than I am. But see how this is already being framed: Top 10-ish.

It's like there are the denialist draftniks who want to keep claiming that Tebow is a 2nd-rounder, then the realists who recognize that he's going 1st round, possibly Top half, possibly Top 10.

Top Tebow: Should Sugar Bowl Crash List?

It's worth asking: Given Tim Tebow's record-setting, career-capping performance in the Sugar Bowl, should that game be included in his "Top 10 Tebow Moments" list?

Here is the reason it should: Statistically, it was his best game ever -- career highs in passing yards and completions, a BCS bowl record for total yards, a Sugar Bowl record for consecutive passes, and absolute dominance. There was also the notion that this happened in his final game.

On the other hand, it was an exhibition game -- look, I was thrilled to see Tebow and the rest of the team play without the weight of the world on their shoulders, but it was more of a reminder of just how trudging the season was for them. And Cincy's D was worse than any Florida saw in the SEC.

It was a wonderful game and a wonderful moment -- undoubtedly, one of the Top 10 games of his career. But not quite a Top 10 moment.

(If anything, my biggest regret from the Top 10 list was not including the 4th quarter of the 2008 SEC Championship Game, which wasn't just Tebow's first come-from-behind win, but the finest performance of his career. I might just adjust the list for that, perhaps combining his original college commitment and his senior year "re-commitment" into one item.)

But make no mistake: The Sugar Bowl performance was a joy to watch, and -- short of an appearance in the national title game -- a fitting final performance.

For Tebow, A New Era Begins Now

Anyone else wake up this morning a little bummed out over the end of the Tebow Era at Florida? Yes, we knew it was coming. Yes, it ended on a wonderful note. But this is it: It's over. Next page.

It has been wonderful to dovetail covering Tebow with covering the Gators, my favorite team. But now, Florida moves on, Tebow moves on... and so does TimTeblog.com.

Starting now, the focus of the blog is on the future for Tim Tebow: Primarily, that involves his status leading up to the NFL Draft in April. But it will also focus on Tebow the Brand -- the endorsement and marketing opportunities that he will have, earning him a lot of money.

(Ben Volin tweeted this morning that he saw Tebow in an ad for Tobacco Free Florida, suggesting that ad started Tebow's "pro" career as an endorser. I believe that ad was released in the early fall.)

Anyway, today is for relaxing and recharging. Tomorrow, the next stage of the Tebow Era begins in earnest.

End of Tebow Era: The Morning After

"I dreamed of being a Gator since I was six years old and it was better than I could have dreamed."

-- Tim Tebow, after last night's Sugar Bowl.

Full quote:

"Honestly, I dreamed of being a Gator since I was 6 years old and it was better than I could have dreamed. But just because I'm graduating the University of Florida doesn't mean I'm still not a Gator. I've been a Gator my whole life and always will be a Gator. So it's not really saying good-bye, it's just moving on to a new chapter, but I'll still always be a Gator."

Some good reads for a Saturday morning:

*Recap/analysis from NYT's Pete Thamel here.

*Recap/analysis from the PBP's Ben Volin here.

*Analysis from Gainesville Sun's Pat Dooley here.

*Analysis from Fanhouse's Clay Travis here.

*Analysis from ESPN's Pat Forde here.

*The NFL transition from the Herald's Joe Goodman here.

*More on the NFL storyline from PFT's Mike Florio here.

*The media-story angle from Mediaite's Rachel Sklar here.

Tim Tebow's Florida/College Career EndsWith a Virtually Perfect Bowl Performance

"Tim Tebow will go down as one of the best -- if not the best -- player in the history of college football."

-- Urban Meyer on 2010 Sugar Bowl MVP Tim Tebow, in the final game of his college football career, one of the most impressive of his career (if we thought that was possible).

533 total yards -- a BCS bowl record -- including 31/35 passing for 482 yards, with 3 TDs and 0 INTs, plus 51 yards rushing and a TD in a 51-24 dismantling of (then-)No. 3 Cincinnati.

It was a record-smashing, virtually perfect performance -- beyond playing for a national title, it is hard to think of a better game for Tim Tebow to end his career on.

I particularly liked a couple of things:

(1) That he did it so predominantly through the air. It was almost like an intentional tweak to the NFL draft experts who claim he can't play QB in the NFL. (So much more on that later.)

(2) That he set his own individual career single-game highs for passing yards and completions, along the way breaking the BCS bowl record for total yards by a single player.

(3) That he had a couple of brilliant TD passes (the one to Deonte Thompson stands out), but also that before he got his own rushing TD, he had selfless pitches to Emmanuel Moody, who ran in for scores.

(4) The Fox "Tebow Cam" was fascinating viewing (if annoyingly running a few seconds ahead of the TV broadcast). And it was the No. 1 hottest search on Google tonight -- just ahead of Tebow's eye-black tonight for his final college game: Ephesians 2:8-10.

Again: This doesn't erase the memory or sting of the loss to Alabama. But insofar as there's nothing you can do about that, this was the ideal coda - the ideal way to go out.

So much to discuss ahead: The legacy, the NFL draft preparation and scuttlebutt, the enormous potential for lucrative endorsement relationships. Plenty of time to get to that.

For now, I concur with Meyer: Tim Tebow is the greatest college football player of all time, and he illustrated why in his final game.

Tebow: Most Dominant BCS Game Ever?

Clay Travis asked an interesting question via Twitter: Aside from Vince Young against USC in the 2005 season national title game, can you remember any individual player having as dominant of a performance in a BCS-level bowl game as Tebow is having in the Sugar Bowl? (On that last drive that ended in Tebow's rushing TD, Tebow set the BCS-bowl record for individual total offense.)

Tebow Google Update: Cam Tops Eye-Black

Halfway through Tim Tebow's final college game, his influence on Google is as strong as ever:

Right now, the No. 1 hot search on Google is "Tebow Cam" -- the gimmick Fox is running. No. 2 is Ephesians 2:8-10.

Tim Tebow's Best First Half Ever

We are halfway through Tim Tebow's final college football game -- and he's making it a memorable finish: 20/24 passing for 321 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs.

For reference, Tebow's career-high in passing for a single game is 338.

If he plays the first series of the second half, he will break that; if he plays longer into the third quarter, he will shatter it -- "400" has a nice ring to it.

It is a bittersweet ending, to be sure, but if you can't play in the national title game, throttling the so-called next-best team in the country is a fair consolation prize.

Via Twitter, the Sentinel's Tim Stephens asked me where this game ranks among Tim Tebow's all-time best. Statistically and from the "eye test," it's Top 5... but this is a virtual exhibition, and that mitigates it. There are no stakes.

But make no mistake: This is classic Tebow dominance -- and, refreshingly, almost entirely through the air. It's like he's trying to prove a point to NFL scouts. (Going against the porous Cincy D won't help much, but Tebow is making the throws.)

I'm not sure where this ranks among Tim Tebow's all-time ranking of performances, but it's fair to say that this was his best first half ever.

Tim Tebow's Eye-Black: Ephesians 2:8-10

In the Sugar Bowl -- and his college football finale -- Tim Tebow is wearing eye-black with "EPH 2:8-10" -- Ephesians 2:8-10

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Tim Tebow's Final Game Day

"It will be hard, probably, taking that uniform off for the last time. Just knowing it is my last time to play for Coach Meyer and to play as a Florida Gator. And we do want to finish this thing the right way."

And it will be hard for fans to watch Tebow walk off the field for the last time, knowing he has played his final snap for Florida. The season isn't ending the way anyone wanted it to, but the opportunity remains to go out a winner, to go out a bowl champ and to finish in the Top 3.

More later: What eye-black will Tebow wear? (My bet: John 3:16, same as last year's national title game.) How opened up will the offense be? How much fun will Tebow and his teammates let themselves have? Will Thom Brenneman be doing the game for Fox?

Final word to Tebow:

"I think that I kind of have mixed feelings. Finishing up the last game means starting a new chapter and closing another. I’ve always had a dream of playing quarterback in the NFL. It’s a new challenge, but (I am) leaving something that’s extremely special and something that will always be a part of me at the University of Florida. It’s very exciting on one hand, but very tough on the other."

Next Up: Tebow's NFL Future

What is next for Tim Tebow? How about becoming the most intriguing name of the 2010 NFL Draft? Both the New York Times and ESPN College GameDay had features focusing on Tebow's NFL future.

Much much more about this starting next week, but I do think that the mainstream takes are focusing too much on Tebow's potential as a traditional, pro-style 60-snap-per-game QB.

His more likely NFL future is as a QB -- but a non-traditional one, even a transformational one. Used opportunistically and creatively, Tebow can have an impact in the NFL. Most important: That Tebow be connected with the right coaching, which is something that Urban Meyer continues to hammer home:

"I hope he goes to the right place. I get very concerned about that. There’s no doubt in my mind that he can play quarterback in the N.F.L."

Tebow Inspires Fox-Time Warner Truce?

I can only imagine it was the notion of withholding the chance for 13 million fans to watch the final college game of Tim Tebow that inspired Fox and Time Warner to call a temporary truce to their stand-off and allow fans to watch the Sugar Bowl tonight.