ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?!!

Tim firing up his team.

Ah, fall is in the air. Its that time of year when pig skins (Super Pig does not like footballs being called 'pig skins'. She was most relieved to find out that they are not made from pigs anymore) dance across football field all over the country.

Thursday (today) begins the official start of the NFL Football Season and guess who is going to be on TV making a speech about non-existent jobs? No, not *David Garrard! Our esteemed president that's who. Now what would you rather do, watch a football game or listen to a speech full of promise that will never be kept? That's what I thought, this had better be one short speech.

Tim accepting the Heisman

I was really sweating it over the summer while the lockout was going on. Would there even be a 2011-2012 football season? What would life be like with out football?! (I know some of you wives are saying, it would be wonderful, right Jane?) Of course there would be college football. I never watched much college ball. Mostly just bowl games. Then we heard about this kid, Tim Tebow, from Florida U who won the Heisman Trophy as a sophomore. Youngest player to ever win. Not only that, but when he gave his acceptance speech, he thanked Jesus Christ his lord and savior. Now that was interesting. So I started paying more attention to the Gators and Tim.

Tim playing for Florida U

For my birthday Connie gave me Tim's book "Through My Eyes". What an amazing young man, what an amazing family. I highly recommend the book. I'm just to the part where he is competing for the #1 spot  for QB at Florida U as a freshman . This is one determined kid. He has been working out since the was 5yrs old! And he has always known what he wanted to be. Just reading about his workouts exhausts me. He puts his heart and soul into everything he does and does it to the best of his ability. If he doesn't win, come out #1, get the starting position, he works, I mean works, until he does. His hard work paid off his first year of college ball as he was well respected by his teammates as a freshman. He tells a story of a drill he had to do his freshman year. Two men at each end of a rope pulling until the other gave up. He was paired with a 300lbs lineman. The match was pretty even and Tim looked for an edge, as he always does. He got the guy off balance and he fell, but didn't let go of the rope. Tim pulled him, hand over hand across the gym floor until he was backed up against the bathroom door, he kicked open the door and kept pulling, kept backing up into the bathroom, then kicked open a stall door and kept pulling until the coach finally said enough. It was his goal to win every drill competiton and he usually did. He never quit anything and he never gave up on anything, and  his sophomore year he was the starting quarterback, throwing for more then 20 touchdown and the winner of the Heisman Trophy.

What working out since the age of 5
does for you.

I'm sure many of you saw him crying after a lose to Alabama 2 years ago. A lot of people thought he was a big cry baby, but he explained it in his book. He is so exhausted after a game, he puts so much into it mentally, physically and emotionally that he is spent by the end of the game and crying is a release. He'd been doing it for years. When he played high school ball, as soon as a game ended, his brother would surround him to shield him from the press of the opposing team. They loved to get pictures of him so they could say their team made TimTebow cry. I'm pretty sure he hasn't cried as a professional, not in public anyway.

Not only is he an outstanding athlete excelling in every sport, especially baseball, (yes baseball, infact coaches from other states were willing to fly him in for games if he'd come play for them! and this is when he was in little league. Even in little league it is anything to win). He puts all that same energy into his Christian walk. Everything he does is prayed over by he, his family and friends. He spent most of his summers either over seas (he's been all over the world), in the Philippines, where he was born or somewhere in the US, telling other about Jesus. He made regular weekly trips to hospitals to visit the sick starting his freshman year of college. He also visited prisons. Even though he wasn't the starting quarterback or a star yet, people had heard about him and the college athletic dept was getting calls asking for him to make appearances. This is a young man of unusual character.

Tim is also know for his leadership qualities. His ability to fire up a team, to get them to work harder, play better and to take every practice, every game, as an opportunity to learn and excel.




Tim playing for the Denver Broncos

He plays for the Denver Broncos now and when he was drafted his jersey sold more and faster then any jersey in NFL history. It remained the #1 best seller for over a year. In his first pro game he ran for more then 30yrds for a touchdown and threw for more then 40yrd for a touchdown. He was the first rookie to ever do that. He hasn't play much, I know it must be very hard for him to stand on the sidelines, but when asked about not playing he said, "I trust my coaches."
Tim says he has a passion to play football and to be the best. He feels that way about his Christian walk too. I know if he's not able to play he will find a way to deal with it. He has a super strong support team, his family. They are amazingly close. I know if he's not to play, it will be maybe the hardest thing he has ever faced up to now, but he will do what God wants.

But I have a feeling he will play and excel, he always has. Come on Timmy, you can do it. Let's show these guys!

(added 9/24) Lately Tim has been filling other positons on the team due to so many injuries. He played as a slot receiver in his last game. When asked about playing other positions beside quarterback, he said he is willing to do what ever he can to help his team. He is really a remarkable young man.
 (added 10/12/11) Tim Tebow has been named the starting quarterback for the Broncos. The Broncos are now at 1-4. Lets hope Tim can do well and help them out. I'll be praying for him.

* David Garrard was the quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars until he was let go this week. ={ The Jags are my team, so I hope his replacement does well. They sure haven't impressed in the pre-season.