The ubiquitous Tim Tebow, media wise well beyond his 23 years, turned up on “The Daily Show” Thursday night to promote his new autobiography, “Through My Eyes.”
“Most people say you want to wait until you’re 24 to write an autobiography,” host Jon Stewart joked.
No matter, the Tebow express rolls on.
“I haven’t seen a guy like this before (who is such) a celebrity before they ever entered the NFL. I’m not sure what it is, but even in The (Denver) Post, nothing generates more hits than Tebow,” posted a reader who calls himself “Thrawn.”
Thrawn is right. Nothing attracts mouse clicks like a Tim Tebow headline.
But why? What is it about the southpaw quarterback with just three NFL starts under his belt that produces such mania?
I’m not being a smart aleck. I’m really curious.
On Thursday evening, I was listening to “The Ride Home” on KOA. A caller adamantly insisted that Tebow’s popularity stems from Tebow being “a conservative and the opposite of Barack Obama.”
Hmm … I’m not sure about that theory, and I’m guessing Tebowmania crosses party lines, but there is something about Tebow that sparks passion.
Here are some of my theories about the rise of the Tebow phenomenon. Let me know if you have one of your own:
Trivia time
What remarkable statistical record did Tebow set during his sophomore year at Florida? (Answer below)
Polling
In my last “Lunch Special” poll, I asked readers if performance-enhancing drugs were a threat to contemporary sports. More than 80 percent agreed that the use of PEDs is rampant and is tarnishing athletics.
Quotable
On today’s “Mike and Mike in the Morning” show on ESPN Radio, retiring NBA great Shaquille O’Neal was asked if he would ever go into coaching. O’Neal laughed off the question, saying, “No way. If I had to deal with players like me I wouldn’t make it as a coach.”
In case you missed it
A restaurant chain in Columbus, Ohio, is dropping a steak named for former Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel.
Rick Hauck, co-founder of the suburban Cleveland-based Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse, told the Columbus Dispatch that the restaurant still loves Tressel, but insisted he had to make the change because Tressel is no longer Ohio State’s coach. Hauck says that tradition demands that the cuts of meat be named for a current Buckeyes coach.
Tressel resigned Monday under the cloud of a scandal involving players selling memorabilia or trading them for tattoos.
Hauck said the restaurant is considering renaming the steak after Ohio State basketball coach Thad Matta.
Trivia Answer
In 2007, on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy, Tebow became the first major college football player to both rush and pass for 20 or more touchdowns in a single season.
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1720 or psaunders@denverpost.com
