As the sun beats down on a fall Saturday afternoon in The Swamp, the Florida Gators prepare to take the field in defense of their 2007 BCS National College Football Championship. Leading them on to the gridiron is 6’3”, 235 pound quarterback Tim Tebow, who set numerous high school records in the state of Florida, has played in college football’s biggest game, and— was homeschooled.

Long before Tebow would become the leader of a top college football program, his parents began instilling in him the qualities and work ethic that would enable him to succeed. Tebow grew up in a missionary home where he was surrounded by a loving environment that would serve as his school for the next thirteen years. “All of my brothers and sisters have been homeschooled,” he said, “and my parents served as our role models during the process.”
As a well rounded, gifted athlete, Tebow was fortunate enough to live in the state of Florida, which allows homeschooled students to participate in high school sports as long as they play for a school within the county and district where they live. The future Gator played three years as starting quarterback for Nease High School in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, where he led the Panthers to a 2005 Florida Class 4A State Championship. Relationships with teammates were never a problem for him, even though he didn’t attend classes with the other athletes. He said, “They didn’t treat me any differently; I was one of the guys on the team to them.”

While the guys on the team didn’t treat him any differently, his superb play on the field brought attention from scouts nationwide. By the end of his high school career Tebow had set numerous Florida state records including career total offense yards (12,960), career passing yards (9,940), career touchdowns (159), career completed passes (631), as well as several single season records.

Scholarship offers began pouring in from various universities across the country, and after careful consideration only two schools remained: Alabama and Florida. While Tebow was intrigued by what the Crismson Tide football program had to offer, he eventually chose Florida because he thought their spread style offense would give him a better chance to succeed. That would prove to be an excellent choice.

In the fall of 2006 Tebow enrolled at Florida, and along with a full class schedule in a new environment, he was given the backup quarterback position behind Chris Leak on the Gator football roster. While some people wonder if a homeschooler will have problems at the highest collegiate level, Tebow proved he might actually have been better prepared than most freshmen. “When I arrived at the University of Florida, I already had good study habits and felt comfortable making the transition to classes. Since I played football in high school at Nease and made many great friends, there was not a big adjustment for me socially.” Because Tebow was homeschooled, he had developed a strong faith and a balanced daily life. “For me every day includes four things: God, family, academics and football, in that order.”

Trials will come and go in everyone’s life and Tebow has learned from his father how best to deal with those situations. “My dad said, ‘Keep your priorities in line and make a list where you can see them. If something gets in the way, then eliminate the obstacle to each goal.”

Dad’s advice worked, and by the end of his freshman season the quarterback had put together an impressive resume. Tebow tied a Florida record for rushing touchdowns by a QB (8), and was second in the nation for QB yards per carry (5.3) behind West Virginia’s Pat White (7.4). Tebow also had a rushing and passing touchdown in the Gators BCS National Championship victory over Ohio State last January.

While the Gators signal caller has become a leader on the field, he is also working just as hard to be a leader off the field. As a member of the 2006 and 2007 Leadership Committees at the University of Florida, Tebow is striving to be a role model for all athletes, especially homeschooled students. He is following the example of his childhood icon, former Gator quarterback and 1996 Heisman Trophy Winner Danny Wuerffel. “(He) was a person I grew up idolizing. In fact, I still have his autograph on the wall at our house. I saw how he treated people and learned to treat everyone how I wanted to be treated.” Tebow continues, “He was such a positive role model on the field, and also academically and spiritually. He would always make time for people by signing autographs and taking pictures with them.”

Because of high profile athletes like Tebow, many institutions are beginning to take a serious look at homeschooled athletes. Seventeen states currently allow homeschoolers to play on local public school teams, and many more states are looking at new legislation regarding homeschool participation. On a collegiate scale, 325 homeschoolers played in NCAA Division I or II during the 2006-2007 season, and 2000+ homeschoolers are playing at other various collegiate levels. In fact, the NCAA has successfully streamlined the admission process for homeschooled athletes.
Many homeschoolers are asking questions about playing at the next level, and rising stars like Tebow have done their best to assist in drawing awareness to the cause. The obvious first steps for any athlete looking at college are to register with the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse and begin applying to their chosen institution. However, Tebow warns there is much more to college than just athletics. “Keep your priorities in line since sports could be gone in an instant. It’s important to work hard and set goals for after athletics end.” As an active church member and the son of a missionary, Tebow would be right back on the mission field with his family if he wasn’t playing football.
As the 2007 college football season gets underway, Tebow will shoulder part of the load in trying to get the Florida Gators back to the national championship game. With the pressure from the fans and media building, he is choosing to remain focused on the job at hand. “My role has changed significantly since last year, when I was the backup quarterback just hoping to get into games to contribute. This season, I have taken on more of a leadership role and have had to change my mentality of where I was previously put into situations to give the team a lift.” He continues, “Now, I need to be the field general ready for all types of situations, and I have to have ‘ice water in my veins’ leading our offense.”

Tebow has done just that in the first half of the ’07 season. At this point in the season, he is at the top of every list for the Hiesman Trophy. He would be the first homeschool graduate to even be nominated for the Heisman Trophy as well as the first sophomore to ever win the award. The Heisman is college football’s most prestigious individual player honor, and is given to the most outstanding college football player in the country every year in December. Tebow would join the impressive list of freshmen and sophomores to be nominated for the Hiesman— Angelo Bertelli, Glenn Davis, Doc Blanchard, Doak Walker, Herschel Walker, Clint Castleberry, Marshall Faulk, Rex Grossman, Larry Fitzgerald, and Adrian Peterson.

You would think that dealing with all the distractions at a university like Florida would be daunting, but Tebow’s focus has helped keep him humble. “I am fortunate to have family members, coaches, and teammates around who can help me stay focused on the right things for us to be successful.” Tebow said. It seems to be working both on and off the field. Tebow has become a superstar in Gainsville, but you wouldn’t notice by how he handles himself. He just doesn’t act on it. CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd noticed “There is the small issue of how competitive one can really be in football without blurting out the occasional cuss word, but Tebow doesn’t.” Florida head coach Urban Meyer also joked “I haven’t heard him cuss yet. I’m sure we’ll get one out of him before he’s done.” I really doubt it coach. -HSI