Whether or not he can actually make it in the NFL, quarterback Tim Tebow is one of the most popular and polarizing players in the league and now he has popped up in the news again, but this time it could end up being a real thorn in the side of the NCAA, as Tebow's name was used in a video game made by EA Sports.
According to CBS Sports, Tebow's name was used in the 2010 version of the EA Sports NCAA college football game, which came out in the summer of 2009, which was when Tebow was still playing at the University of Florida for the Gators. It was first spotted by a user on SB Nation and the issue came up with a player using the Florida Gators playbook in the game, which had the name "Shotgun Twin QB Tebow." Where this all adds up into trouble for EA and the NCAA, is the fact that former basketball star Ed O'Bannon from UCLA is suing the NCAA, EA Sports and the Collegiate Licensing Company for using his likeness and others and making profits off of it.
The NCAA said through chief legal officer Donald Remy that the O'Bannon suit was full of baseless theories, but instead the Tebow use shows that the NCAA is being untruthful about something. The lawsuit could be a huge blow to the NCAA, as a trial could force them to pay millions, if not billions on the money they have made using likenesses of other players. While the NCAA says no facts have supported it, emails were made public that showed that the NCAA is and was aware that the company is using the likenesses of players. The addition of Tebow's name to the whole situation could be a huge headache for the NCAA, as he is one of the most popular figure in sports and was listed as the number one influential athlete. Forbes writes that Johnny Manziel could also join the suit to start making money off of his own likeness, but that is only speculation at this point. EA already lost a suit that argued they were allowed to use players numbers as a First Amendment right, but that was lost on appeal and a former producer for EA stated that the company knew they were suing the players likenesses.
Tebow has had quite the year so far and after getting released from the New York Jets he has received a number of offers, but none have been from the NFL. He has had serious offers from the Canadian and Arena Football Leagues, including one from Ron Jaworski as co-owner of the Philly Soul, as well as ridiculous ones from lingerie football and indoor football. Tebow has also had to deal with the media hype surrounding his possible signing with a team, as well as crazed fans in Jacksonville that have taken out ads and have petitioned the White House to get the Jaguars to sign Tebow. Jax appeared to be the best fit for him, as the team is bad and they are in his hometown, but so far new owner Shad Khan has been on the other side of it and general manager David Caldwell has not gone after him.
Tebow was underused and relegated to blocking duty mostly by the Jets, who said they had plans for Tebow but literally did everything they could to not figure out a way to use him. He ended up with 102 rushing yards and 39 passing yards and never made it into the endzone and eventually the Jets thanked him for his service and hard training by releasing him. Tebow spent the offseason working out and worked on his fundamentals, footwork and mechanics with former NFL quarterback and Heisman winners Vinny Testaverde and Chris Weinke.