If the Davey O’Brien Award committee looks at numbers alone, they can certainly make a case for the three announced finalists. Sam Bradford (Oklahoma), Colt McCoy (Texas) and Graham Harrell (Texas Tech) have lit up the Big 12 scoreboards, and kept the statisticians busy.
But the Florida faithful know it’s not just his arm and his legs that make Tebow so valuable. Following the agonizing home loss to Mississippi in September, Tebow delivered an emotional pledge to fans and teammates alike, “I promise you one thing: A lot of good will come out of this. You have never seen any player in the entire country play as hard as I will play the rest of the season, and you will never see someone push the rest of the team as hard as I will push everybody the rest of the season.”
The pledge must have worked. In the eight games since then, the Gators have outscored their opponents 414-97, including 136-3 in the first quarter.
After his defense surrendered 502 yards and 45 points to the Gators in Tallahassee on Saturday, Seminole head coach Bobby Bowden had nothing but praise for Tebow, “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a better leader…. He directed everything out there. He’s a tremendous player and a tremendous leader.”
But Mickey Andrews may have unwittingly paid Tebow the highest compliment of all. Entering the post-game interview room, he simply announced to those in attendance that he was embarrassed. Then he walked out without answering any questions.
The Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award will be presented on December 11th during the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show.
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