Berry Tramel, Sports columnist
BCS National Championship: The Rock Star QBs - OU's Sam Bradford vs. Florida's Tim Tebow
Celebrity won’t matter when game starts
By Berry Tramel
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Published: January 7, 2009
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Tim Tebow walked into the Harbor Beach Marriott the other day, and the clamor could not have been greater had Elvis Presley himself stopped by after filming "Girl Happy.”
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→Where: Dolphin Stadium, Miami
→TV: FOX (Cox 12)
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One difference: It wasn’t schoolgirls, from Florida or anywhere else, who quivered at the sight of the quarterback icon.
It was media.
Calloused, cynical media. Many of them from Florida, yes, but still. Tebow is a Sunshine State legend, beloved by fans who pen songs and media who write sonnets and teammates who gush unashamedly about their leader.
"It’s kind of cool being with a rock star,” said Florida flanker Louis Murphy.
This is a devotion unlike what we know out West, where star quarterbacks are feted and revered and occasionally elected to Congress.
But Tebow’s celebrity seems to trump anything seen from the
Rio Grande to the Dakotas. Tebow’s celebrity seems to involve
Beatles-like worship.
"He gets absolutely mobbed when he goes to class,” said
Sam Bradford, who also has a
Heisman Trophy and has quarterbacked a team to this Big Bowl showdown for the national championship. "That’s not me.”
Quite the contrast of quarterbacks in the Big Bowl. While Tebow handles his spotlight with ease, Bradford would rather be taking snaps. While Tebow smiles and charms his adoring media, Bradford looks at his watch and wonders how much longer he has to endure the interrogation that goes with winning the grandest individual prize in sport.
But here’s good news for
Soonerville: Comfort in the pocket, not on the podium, will determine this football game. Firing accurate passes, not witty one-liners, will put points on the
Dolphin Stadium scoreboard.
No doubt this game will be determined by quarterback play. If the
Sooners give Bradford time to throw, it’s doubtful Florida can win. If the Sooners allow Tebow to be two-dimensional, completing passes and turning all
Larry Csonka to bounce off defenders, it’s doubtful Florida can lose.
And while being a rock star has its advantages, none of them actually pertain to a football game. The closest college player to Tebow I can think of,
Archie Manning 40 years ago, went 22-10-1 as the
Ole Miss quarterback, including 11-6-1 in
SEC games. Not bad, but not Big Bowl.
So while Tebow admits he’s enjoying the moment — "I’m having fun; I’m going to remember it” — he also says, "It would be a lot more fun if we win.”
This is just the second meeting ever of Heisman winners. The first didn’t go so well for OU; Southern Cal and
Matt Leinart routed
Jason White 55-19 in this same venue. An eerie similarity — Leinart seemed much more at home in the spotlight than did White.
But make no mistake.
Bob Stoops has the quarterback he wants. Both in style — running quarterbacks need not apply at OU — and in demeanor.
"He’s the best,” Stoops said of Sammy B., "meaning he’s just calm. The guy is humble. He just doesn’t let it bother him.”
Stoops is highly complimentary of Tebow. To be otherwise is goofy, but Stoops said, "I love what he represents for the college game and what he represents as a student-athlete.”
But Stoops likes
Gary Cooper quarterbacks. Walk softly and carry a big throwing arm.
Stoops said he has talked with Bradford about his new celebrity status.
"I know it’s funny to think as a young person,” Stoops said, but "I experienced it even in 2000, that all of a sudden people treat you different when you win the national championship.
"And I’m sure the same has happened for him now that he’s a Heisman Trophy winner. People treat you different, and you’re sitting here thinking, ‘Hey, I’m the same guy. Nothing has changed.’ It takes awhile to get used to it.”
Tebow has gotten used to it. He has embraced it. He’s a fabulous face for college football. I don’t think his story or his personality is shtick. I think he probably is who everyone below the Mason-Dixon line thinks he is.
Bradford will have to get used to it. He might even embrace it.
But before those evolutions and decisions are made, there’s a football game to be played, which will be decided not at all by rock-star status.
Berry Tramel: 405-760-8080. Berry Tramel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1.
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Go Gators
gators 55 mobilehoma 21
cred. He even mentioned them in the same sentence with USC and Fla., of course Corso had
to bring the guy back to earth, since he has done 2 of the Sooners games, where the defense
gave up 86 pts. total in those 2. After Corso explained it to the Herd and reality soaked in
that was the end of the street cred. for ole Stoopsy& Bret Baby. I don't think Lee will be
wearing a Sooner-Schooner Hat on Thursday. You know a former coach see's things that
media people are blind to, or cover-up, depending on where they are from.
cred. He even mentioned them in the same sentence with USC and Fla., of course Corso had
to bring the guy back to earth, since he has done 2 of the Sooners games, where the defense
gave up 86 pts. total in those 2. After Corso explained it to the Herd and reality soaked in
that was the end of the street cred. for ole Stoopsy& Bret Baby. I don't think Lee will be
wearing a Sooner-Schooner Hat on Thursday. You know a former coach see's things that
media people are blind to, or cover-up, depending on where they are from.
Gerald, Miami(OK, not that burg in Florida)