Though it was former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow promoting Gatorade‘s new G Series product line on Friday in Miami, FL, the commercial set to air on Sunday during Super Bowl XLIV features (in part) his former teammate, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver and 2009 Rookie of the Year Percy Harvin. Here is a sneak peak:
Former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow spent a good part of the Friday before Super Bowl XLIV not speaking about his Focus on the Family advertisement set to air during the game but rather working out at a makeshift Gatorade Performance Lab in Miami, FL. Tebow went through a number of exercises including a caloric expenditure test while wearing a Gatorade towel and promoting the company’s newest line of beverage products: G Series.
G Series, which will be introduced at the Super Bowl, is a three-part regimen designed to fuel every step of an athlete’s performance. It consists of three components: a priming drink, performance drink and recovery drink. “Whether it’s practice, training or competition, the G Series three-part system fuels the body at every stage of your routine – before, during and after – helping you perform at your best,” according to Gatorade.
With plenty of endorsement opportunities sure to come Tebow’s way (and some already have), none makes more sense than Gatorade, a product developed by University of Florida scientists in 1965 in Gainesville, FL.
Should Tebow receive a full endorsement offer from the company, he would join Indianapolis Colts QB Peyton Manning, New York Giants QB Eli Manning and San Diego Chargers RB LaDanian Tomlinson as its NFL representatives.
“I don’t have to fake it,” Tebow told The Miami Herald of his endorsing Gatorade. “I believe in the product. It’s part of my life for a long time. Being a Gator, that’s what you drink. My personality, if I don’t believe in something, I can’t fake it.”
Tebow also spoke with the Herald about his life’s direction since the 2010 Sugar Bowl.
“It’s crazy,” he said. “It’s obviously a lot of scrutiny. There are a lot of good things and a lot of bad things when you’re dealing with it. There are pros and cons, just like with everything. I want people to believe in me. So when they don’t, when they talk negatively about me, when they create lies about me, when they stir stuff up about me, it can be frustrating. Some of it is false. Some of it is lies. Some of it, people just want to bring you down. It’s frustrating. But it does give me a lot of motivation.”
Video of Tebow working out for Gatorade, courtesy of the Sun-Sentinel, after the jump!
Continue Reading » Tebow and Gatorade: A match made in Gainesville
The planned Super Bowl XLIV commercial for Focus on the Family featuring former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow and his mother Pam Tebow has drawn plenty of media attention over the last few weeks. Seeing as the event is just days away and the advertisement has not been pulled from the CBS broadcast, some have gone ahead and either responded or parodied the yet-to-be-seen commercial.
Jimmy Kimmel Live:
TAUNTR.com:
1 » Along with his mechanics and future as an NFL quarterback, former Florida Gators star Tim Tebow and his decision-making have come into question over recent weeks in regard to his Focus on the Family advertisement which will run during Super Bowl XLIV. Sally Jenkins, a sports columnist with the Washington Post, believes the problem is not with the message of Tebow’s ad but rather those criticizing it. Jenkins, who Is pro-choice, writes: “As statements at Super Bowls go, I prefer the idea of Tebow’s pro-life ad to, say, Jim McMahon dropping his pants. […] We’re always harping on athletes to be more responsible and engaged in the issues of their day, and less concerned with just cashing checks. It therefore seems more than a little hypocritical to insist on it only if it means criticizing sneaker companies, and to stifle them when they take a stance that might make us uncomfortable.”
2 » Four-star wide receiver recruit Ivan McCartney (Miramar, FL) has yet to declare where he intends to play college football in 2010. For a while, he has been down to the Gators, Miami Hurricanes and West Virginia Mountaineers. Though four-star defensive end commit Lynden Trail (Miami, FL) has tried to convince him to join Florida’s class, McCartney is believed to be heading elsewhere. However, he did give this sterling quote about his experience with the Gators to the Miami Herald: “There’s something about Florida I don’t feel for the other schools, a very strong, loving feeling. The atmosphere is wild. The campus is outrageous. They have swagger, too. And it’s an awesome place, no matter who is coaching there.”
Extra Bit » Good stuff from The Gainesville Sun on Florida senior swimmers and two-time Olympians Omar Pinzon and Shaune Fraser, who are looking to leave a mark.
1 » In the immediate aftermath of dropping four-star safety Demar Dorsey (Lauderdale Lakes, FL), the Florida Gators contacted three-star tight end commitment Michael McFarland (Tampa, FL) and informed him that they no longer need him to grayshirt for the 2010 season as an additional scholarship has opened up. Instead, assistant head coach and defense/defensive line coach Dan McCarney told McFarland that the Gators want him to enroll with the rest of his 2010 class. OGGOA believes McFarland will likely redshirt his first season.
2 » Freshman guard Kenny Boynton has the star power, sophomore point guard Erving Walker is hitting daggers from downtown, junior forward Chandler Parsons is nailing remarkable buzzer-beating game-winners and junior transfer center Vernon Macklin brings the size…so what exactly is junior F Alex Tyus’ role? Tyus is, simply put, the most consistent player on the team. He has scored double figures in 11 straight games with 15+ points in six of those contests all while being a terror in the paint and averaging almost eight rebounds per game. Through the ups and downs of the season, Tyus has been the constant either keeping the Gators in games or helping them pull off routs. He’s even been hitting three-pointers. “I feel like I’m understanding my role a little more,” Tyus told Pat Dooley of The Gainesville Sun. “I’m more comfortable.” If Tyus continues playing at this level, a triumvirate of himself, Boynton and Walker could very well propel Florida to its first March Madness birth in three seasons.
Four more BITS on Corey Brewer, Tim Tebow and more after the jump!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: McFarland, Tyus, Brewer, Tebow
1 » New Orleans Saints defensive end Bobby McCray is the only former Florida Gators football player to make his way out of the 2010 NFL Playoffs and into Super Bowl XLIV in Miami, FL. McCray and his team will face the Indianapolis Colts and star quarterback Peyton Manning in the grandest stage of them all. Also in action Sunday were Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin (five receptions for 38 yards, four rushes for 15 yards and one fumble) and New York Jets cornerback Lito Sheppard (two tackles). McCray has been a big-name over the last few weeks, delivering powerful hits to both Arizona Cardinals QB Kurt Warner and Vikings QB Brett Favre.
2 » No. 11 Florida men’s tennis fell 5-2 to the No. 6 Baylor Bears on Sunday at the Baylor Tennis Center in Waco, TX. Senior Antoine Benneteau held his own in singles competition, though junior Alexandre Lacroix fell in three sets to Denes Lukacs 6-3, 3-6, 6-1. Lacroix and Benneteau, the No. 10-ranked doubles team in the country, continued their hot streak by winning their match 9-7. The Gators host the Furman Paladins on Jan. 30 at 10 a.m. in the first round of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex. The Georgia Tech yellow Jackets and Penn State Nittany Lions are also involved in the short tournament.
CNBC Sports Business Reporter Darren Rovell was curious about the money making potential of former Florida Gators quarterback Tim Tebow. Seeing as Tebow will likely be on the cover of NCAA Football 11 and is set to appear in a television commercial during Super Bowl XLIV, Rovell sought out the Davie-Brown Index to compare Tebow’s endorsement potential to others at his position currently playing in the NFL.
The findings were simple: Tebow is already more popular and appealing than future hall of famers Brett Favre and Tom Brady and more of a trendsetter than Super Bowl winners Ben Roethlisberger and Eli Manning.
It is important to remember that Tebow has already achieved these DBI ratings without competing in the Senior Bowl, working out at the NFL Combine or even being selected in the 2010 NFL Draft – yet. It looks like he will have plenty of money to donate to the Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association even if he does not end up succeeding in the professional ranks. Don’t worry – he will.
Photo Credit: Mark Seliger, GQ
UPDATE: As OGGOA reported yesterday, CBS was in the process of reviewing Tebow’s Focus on the Family advertisement. Sports Business Daily mentioned Wednesday that the script for the Super Bowl spot has received early approval from the network. It appears as if the ad will not carry a strong pro-life message as was the concern of some at CBS. Almost all major networks, especially those airing significant or highly rated national events, have a policy against advocacy ads regardless of the slant.
1 » The Florida Gators’ pairing of senior Antoine Benneteau and junior Alexandre Lacroix took home the doubles title at the SEC Indoor Championships with an 8-5 win over the Georgia Bulldogs’ pair of Nate Schnugg and Jamie Hunt. The duo of Benneteau and Lacroix is now 13-1 overall with four double titles to their credit since September. The No. 10-ranked pair will lead the No. 11 Gators men’s tennis team as dual match season gets underway.
2 » In a prediction he admitted had no source or foundation, Sports Illustrated‘s Peter King has guessed that former Florida quarterback Tim Tebow will end up with the San Francisco 49ers as the No. 13 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft. “The Niners gave a tepid endorsement to Alex Smith as their quarterback of 2010 after the season; and Mike Singletary didn’t draft him; and Singletary is going to fall in love with Tebow once he meets him after the season; and Tebow is the kind of winner that Singletary has preached he wants since he took the job from Mike Nolan in mid-2008,” King wrote. “After Singletary meets Tebow at the Scouting Combine, this is my prediction of his reaction: He’ll turn to GM Scot McCloughan and say, ‘That’s my guy. We’ve got to have him.’”
3 » Speaking of Tebow, OGGOA has been told by more than one source that the Super Bowl XLIV advertisement in which he is a spokesperson for Focus on the Family may eventually be pulled by CBS. This move would not be without precedent; networks airing major sporting events have yanked similar ads before, though it is safe to say that none featured a celebrity of Tebow’s stature.
4 » Though he came back from a trip to the Michigan Wolverines still committed to the Gators, four-star defensive back Demar Dorsey (Lauderdale Lakes, FL) has decided to add a surprising final visit to his docket. Previously scheduled to end his travels in Gainesville, FL, this weekend, Dorsey will now fly out to visit the USC Trojans on Jan. 29. Dorsey was always interested in USC and had previously planned to visit the Tennessee Volunteers when Lane Kiffin was head coach. “I consider myself committed to Florida, but things are still up in the air,” Dorsey told Gerard Martinez of USCFootball.com. “Signing day is Feb. 3, so…”
Taurean Green (@TaureanJGreen):
"Yes yes....my #GatorBoys in the Elite 8. All u jive time turkeys that thought Marquette was gonna win can sit down and go to sleep!"
The Silver Lining is an exclusive column written by Adam Silverstein of OnlyGators.com for Yahoo! Sports and Rivals.com affiliate InsideTheGators.com. OGGOA readers can receive a special discount on a subscription to InsideTheGators, which can be accessed by clicking the image above!
