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The big Tebow news has not been his struggles taking snaps from center at Senior Bowl practice or even the shirtless pic of Tebow at the Senior Bowl weigh-in featured on TMZ's website (why?), but rather a commercial scheduled to air during the Super Bowl that has the 2007 Heisman winner speaking on behalf of Focus on the Family, a pro-life Christian group.
Oh, boy.
The issue has, needless to say, sparked major controversy.
Tebow will appear in the commercial with his mother Pam. The two will reportedly tell the story of Mrs. Tebow's decision to ignore her doctors' advice when they recommended she have an abortion during her difficult pregnancy with Tim.
How does Tebow feel about the controversy? "I know some people won't agree with it," he said, "but I think they can at least respect that I stand up for what I believe, and I'm never shy about that."
He's also quoted as saying, "I don't feel like I'm very preachy about it, but I do stand up for what I believe. Unfortunately, in today's society, not many athletes tend to do that. So I'm just standing for something."
Tebow's stance of "I stand up for what I believe" has not satisfied the many groups lobbying CBS to scratch the Super Bowl ad.
Dozens of women's advocacy groups and other liberal organizations have written a letter to CBS urging them "to immediately cancel this ad and refuse any other advertisement promoting Focus on the Family's agenda."
The letter also says, "By offering one of the most coveted advertising spots of the year to an anti-equality, anti-choice, homophobic organization, CBS is aligning itself with a political stance that will damage its reputation, alienate viewers, and discourage consumers from supporting its shows and advertisers."
Something tells me the other side doesn't agree...
According to ABC news, Gary Schneeberger, a spokesman for Focus on the Family, does not understand the controversy surrounding the commercial. "There is nothing political or controversial about the spot. It's a personal story about the love between a mother and son," he said.
ABC News also reports that, according to a source at CBS, "the words 'abortion' and 'pro-life' do not appear anywhere in the ad."
So how did CBS respond to the pleas to drop the ad? "At CBS, our standards and practices process continues to adhere to a process that ensures all ads -- on all sides of an issue -- are appropriate for air. We will continue to consider responsibly produced ads from all groups for the few remaining spots in Super Bowl XLIV."
Is it just me, or does that sound like a subtle invitation for the other side to buy an ad of their own?
Since news of the commercial first broke, Tebow has received an outpouring of praise from various media outlets and on message boards across the Internet for standing up for his beliefs.
He's also received a great deal of flak from the media and on Internet message boards for choosing to participate in the ad because of the polarizing nature of the issue.
Seriously, those message boards are like war (of words) zones.
Ok, enough of this ‘non football stuff'....
Take a look at a wonderful series we are doing profiling NCAA players that YOU REQUESTED who will be entering the NFL draft. Here are the first few, you can check back weekly for more. If you have a particular request, shoot us an e-mail. While it's not likely that we will be able to get to every player submitted, we'll certainly try. - Danny Hobrock
· NFL Draft Prospects: Dexter McCluster, Running Back, Ole' Miss Rebels · NFL Draft Prospects: Aaron Hernandez, Tight End, Florida Gators · NFL Draft Prospects: Terrence Cody, Defensive Tackle, Alabama Crimson Tide · NFL Draft Prospects: C.J. Spiller, Running Back, Clemson Tigers
Danny is a sports journalist primarily covering college football and professional baseball. His work for Xtra Point Football has garnered national attention and is critically acclaimed. Danny is the former editor of a political and current events website and the editor of our college football content.
* Editors Note - Neither author Danny Hobrock or Xtra Point Football is offering any opinion on this sensitive topic. The publication of this article simply reports facts in the public domain.
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