Tim Tebow Non-troversy

By John P. Wise
One Great Season

NEW YORK -- Tim Tebow is a virgin. Steve Spurrier didn't vote for him. In other news, Tebow plays quarterback for the University of Florida, and they seem to have a pretty good football team this year.

Don't be fooled by what you read on the blogs today. There is no controversy coming from SEC Media Days in Birmingham this week. Well, maybe, if you consider Bobby Petrino staying with Arkansas now for going on 19 or 20 months. There's certainly something to be said for that guy's loyalty, eh?

It's time for those who wonder why such a big deal is made out of Tebow to start making a big deal out of Tebow. But for the right reasons.

Tebow has a chance to win a third SEC championship ring, a third national championship ring and perhaps even a second Heisman trophy. Such a trifecta will no doubt be difficult, but it's within reach, and even if he achieves none of the above, he still has a chance to go down as the best college football player ever. Those are the optics through which I'll be viewing the upcoming season.

I don't care if Tim Tebow is sleeping with cheerleaders, sleeping with Bea Arthur or sleeping with nobody. The blogger who asked Tebow if he's preserving his purity until marriage should not have asked it. No way.

+ YOUR THOUGHTS: Is Tebow's virginity relevant?
+ ALSO: SEC Preview

I have a couple of Louisville friends up here this weekend, and they're pretty big college football fans. Hard not to be when the Cardinals have enjoyed great success in recent years. And as savvy observers of the sport, they shared their takes on the Tebow non-troversy:

Pat: "If Tim Tebow is professing his faith to God on TV like he does, then I think questions about his morality become fair game."

Tim: "I think it depends on the venue. If it's a one-on-one, private sit-down interview, then maybe that's OK. But in a packed press room like Thursday, I thought it was inappropriate."

What isn't inappropriate is the guess that LSU fans are already yanking their dirty sheets off their twin beds to paint some degrading messages about Tebow's virginity, as well as the South Carolina poets presumably putting pen to paper in preparation for some obnoxious chants when the Gators visit Columbia in November.

Speaking of South Carolina, head Gamecock Steve Spurrier admitted he was the voter who snubbed Tebow on the league's all-preseason team, giving top honors to Ole Miss' Jevan Snead.

In an overstated mea culpa that was perhaps overdone by ESPN, Spurrier said he quickly signed off on a ballot filled out by an assistant. The coach heaped all-world praise on Tebow, saying he's not just the best quarteback in the league, but the best player in the country.