There, I’ve said it.  And I was glad to see him go down in flames with the Broncos last week.  Let the cursing, name-calling, and un-friending begin.  I know that, in particular, my gator friends will be incensed.  But I’m just being honest…I’m weary of all the Tebow-mania that has been going on.

By now, many have stopped reading this article.  Some will get past the headline, just to see what garbage I’m about to spew.  But once they read that first paragraph, most will be gone.  But, if you’ve made it this far, I think you’ll see that I don’t like Tim Tebow for all the right reasons.

You see, I’m an ardent sports fan.  I have been all my life.   And, I’ve been a true fan of my favorite teams.  I grew up in Columbus, Ohio, so my college-football heart belongs to the Ohio State Buckeyes.  My mom and dad were originally from Pittsburgh (and I started school while living there) so my pro-football heart belongs to the Pittsburgh Steelers.  My pro-baseball heart belongs to the Pittsburgh Pirates, and it’s not easy to say that.  It’s been hard to be a Pirate fan over the last 20 years.

Over the years, I’ve celebrated my teams’ victories, big and small.  I’ve mourned their losses…and sometimes those losses made me feel like my heart was truly broken.  And that brings us back to why I don’t like Tim Tebow.

He seems like a good-enough guy.  He’s big, strong and talented; he’s focused and even seems to be a pretty good role-model for kids…something we don’t see enough of in sports.  And I don’t have a problem with his outward expression of his religion.  I would much rather watch someone take a knee in a private moment with their God, than watch some of the “it’s all about me” celebrations that seem to happen on every other play.

The reason I don’t like Tim Tebow goes back to the heartbreak I mentioned earlier.  You see, I can never forgive him for the role he played in two of the many heartbreaks I’ve experienced over the years.  The first was on January 8, 2007.  He played a role, albeit a relatively minor one, in the BCS National Championship game when my beloved Buckeyes were trashed by the gators.  The pain from that loss was magnified because I live in the middle of gator-country.

But that was a few years ago.  The pain, but not the memory, eventually subsides a bit.  I was happy that he didn’t win his second Heisman Trophy…since that honor has only happened once in college football history…to a Buckeye.  But he proved to be a winner through his college career.  And, I must admit to a tinge of disappointment when my Steelers didn’t draft him onto their team when they had the chance.  And I even found myself taking his side this year when he started receiving criticism for the “Tebow-ing” he did after big wins.

But then he broke my heart again.  My injury-plagued Steelers limped into Denver to take on the Broncos in the first round of the NFL playoffs.  Even with many of the Steelers nursing injuries, they were still expected to make short work of the Broncos and move on to the next round on their way to another Super Bowl.  But, that’s not what happened.  A heart-wrenching game ended with a miracle-finish in overtime.  Overtime lasted one play; a touchdown pass from Tim Tebow that sent my Steelers home for the rest of the playoffs.

As a Buckeye fan, I learned early the traditional song that “We don’t give a damn about the whole state of michigan because we’re from Ohio.”  As a Steelers fan, I’m not particularly fond of the Ravens, the Cowboys or the Raiders.  And I’ve still never forgiven the Atlanta Braves for stealing the Pirates chance for a trip to the World Series on a Championship Series-ending play-at-the-plate in 1992.  By the way, I don’t like Barry Bonds either. 

Notice, I didn't say I hate Tim Tebow.  Hate is way too strong of a word.  I just don’t like him.  It’s part of sports.  And that’s why I don’t like Tim Tebow…because I’m a sports fan.