Tebow entering into Favre, Bryant and Woods territory

Tim Tebow has become the classic “love-him-or-hate-him” celebrity athlete, falling into the category with characters such as Kobe Bryant, Tiger Woods and Brett Favre.

But why?

Why is Tim Tebow hated like a man accused of sexual assault? Or a man whose adultery against his wife possibly totaled over 10 women?

These men have garnered negative media attention due to major lapses in judgment, reflecting a poor moral character, unlike Tebow.

Let’s take a step back for a second.

We’re talking about a guy who spent three of his high school summers in the Philippines helping his parents with their orphanage and other missionary work. A guy whose game-day Bible verse references painted on his eye black led to millions of curious people searching them on Google.

Tebow wins despite critics

All this guy does is take the field, win football games and thank the Lord and praise his teammates and coaches after the game. What more can you ask from a quarterback?

Those are just the basics.

He forces teams to put eight defenders in the box to slow down his versatile run attack. He somehow eludes a constant pass rush to scramble for productive yards. And he refuses to run out of bounds or quarterback-slide. His team-first mindset pushes him to gain the extra yardage, which, more often than not, results in him squaring up a defender instead of avoiding contact. The guy is basically Brian Urlacher playing quarterback.

So what is there to hate? That he’s not the stereotypical pocket quarterback with a flawless throwing motion?

OK, those people might have something. You can’t hide the fact that his motion resembles more of a baseball pitcher’s than a quarterback’s. And yes, his statistics don’t sparkle like Aaron Rodgers’ or Drew Brees’. But at this point, who cares? The guy is 6-1 as a starter and has turned a once 1-4 basement-dwelling team into a legitimate contender to win the AFC West.

So, is it the overblown media attention that stirs up the hatred?

Yes, in a way.

Let me quote his former college teammate and current Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin.

“He’s a winner. He’s a leader. All of the things you hear about, you may think it’s too much, but that’s what he is,” Harvin told the Associated Press.

This is precisely why most people tend to dislike certain athletes. For the excessive attention they receive and not actually for the person.

You might think it’s too much, but in hindsight, that isn’t his fault. He can’t help the amount of attention he gets from the media.

Hate the media. Not Tim Tebow.

So we have only one obvious topic left to discuss. Tebow wears his beliefs on his sleeve, and many people don’t care for it.

“I don’t hate him because of that, I just would rather not have to hear that every single time he takes a good snap or makes a good handoff,” said ex-Bronco quarterback Jake Plummer, about Tebow’s outspoken faith on XTRA Sports, a radio station in Phoenix, Ariz.

Detroit Lions’ tight end Tony Scheffler and linebacker Stephen Tulloch’s names hit headlines a few weeks back for their mocking of the apparent new fad of “Tebowing,” which involves Tebow going to one knee to thank God during a game.

Can you imagine if Plummer said that about a Buddhist? Or if Scheffler and Tulloch mocked a devout Muslim’s post-touchdown prayer toward Mecca?

Huge taboo. The media would have a fit.

But when Tebow thanks God after a big win by dropping to a knee, it’s perfectly acceptable to poke fun without repercussions.

Appreciate Tebow for the teammate he is

In the larger scale of things, I think America needs to rethink everything. Not that it’s going to happen, though. This post-modern society all but preaches to its populace to mock Christianity.

But let’s just start with this: Appreciate Tebow for who he is. Watch the guy play football. Listen to him have nothing but positive, uplifting things to say about his teammates and opponents alike. He leads by example and displays the utmost humility.

How can you hate that?

You can’t.