Friday, December 12, 2008

The one thing Tim Tebow can't do

I'm traveling back to Columbia from Orlando today, so ther hasn't been time to do a typical weekend preview blog. Sure, there's some stuff going on I'm caught up on. A Montgomery TV station decided to go with a Steve Spurrier's about to be hired at Auburn story without bothering to confirm their facts with anyone. By eleven they had backpedaled to the point of barely acknowledging their "scoop" from the early newscast. Now a Mobile station says it's Will Muschamp. And yet another report has Wake Forest's Jim Grobe interviewing for the job. I think Auburn should hire all three and then spin a wheel to say who gets to make decisions - it couldn't be much more confusing than what normally seems to be going on over there. Still, since I have to get back on the road, in lieu of the typical post please accept this WORLDWIDE SUPER TIM TEBOW EXCLUSIVE STORY instead....

Last night at the College Football Awards show at Disney, Tim Tebow won the Maxwell Award as the most outstanding player in college football. Over the course of a two hour telecast we heard about Tebow's exploits as a makeshift doctor performing circumcisions and removing cysts. The hosts, current players, Terrell Buckley and even Ann Bowden paid tribute to him. Tebow's just about perfect in the eyes of everyone. I can now tell you there is something he falters at.

Because Tebow is a huge story in Florida, there was much more coverage of the award show event from instate media than in a typical year. Too many people confined in a very small press space on the second floor meant there were no electical outlets available to power the laptop I'm writing this on. I needed to be able to send my postshow story about the awards in to fightingators.com, and my laptop was under twenty percent power left. There was one option available - the press area's men's restroom had an open wall outlet by the sink. Not ideal, for obvious reasons, but you do what you have to sometimes.

So I'm set up with my men's room "office", just like the Fonz only not even remotely cool. Still, if I can get fifteen minutes worth of juice back into the laptop that should be enough to make it through the show. Meanwhile, Tebow was presented the Disney Spirit award for being the most inspirational story in college football and then brought to the press area on the second floor of the building. I go out to get a couple of quotes for the story and then return to my laptop. After he's done talking, Tebow drops in for a quick pitstop before returning downstairs.

Tebow joked with me about my unusual writing location as he came to wash up. I had to put the screen down, because you really don't want a guy to find out he's won the Maxwell Award (they give us the winners early so we can start writing as long as no one puts a story out before the award's been presented) by seeing the headline on a story you're writing about him in the men's room. Tebow goes to rinse his hands and... nothing. Not even Tebow can get those stupid motion detector sinks to give him a steady stream of water to rinse his hands off. Eventually there were enough of those one second splashes to do the job and get Tim back downstairs - there was more to be won. Other than when he's dealing with sinks, that's how it usually turns out.

1 comment:

cramela said...

I think Grobe would be a perfect hire if Auburn can some how get him. What he has accomplished at Wake is amazing. Plus he runs a style of offense that will keep the old school Auburn faithful happy. Also, like Paul Johnson's offense it will be difficult to prepare for in a short timeframe.