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Legacy

Love him or hate him, everyone in college football has an opinion on Tim Tebow. The former NFL quarterback (and current New York Mets Single-A outfielder/ESPN college football commentator) is one of the most polarizing figures in recent college sports history, and he rose to prominence as a Florida quarterback.

Tebow contributed immediately as a freshman, serving as a change-of-pace quarterback behind starter Chris Leak as the Gators won the 2007 national title.

He took over as the starter as a sophomore and had a season to remember, passing for 3,286 yards with 32 touchdowns and six interceptions and rushing for 895 yards and 23 touchdowns. He accounted for 55 total touchdowns, and his 23 rushing scores are a single-season SEC record. He was the only player in FBS history to rush and throw for at least 20 touchdowns in the same season and became the first sophomore ever to win the Heisman Trophy in 2007.

A year later, he threw for 2,747 yards with 30 touchdowns and four interceptions and added 673 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns. Florida finished 12-1 and won its second national championship in three seasons. He also won the 2008 Maxwell Award, becoming the first player to win that honor twice.

By the end of his Florida career, he had five NCAA records, 14 SEC records and 28 Florida statistical records. He accounted for 145 total touchdowns and 57 rushing scores, both NCAA records. He is eighth all-time on the NCAA's career rushing touchdown list and owns the career record with most consecutive games with at least one rushing touchdown and one passing touchdown.

He was a three-time Heisman Trophy finalist, including his win in 2007.

Defining moment

The moment most Florida (and college football fans) will remember Tim Tebow for was one of his lowest as a player. On Sept. 27, 2008, Ole Miss walked into the Swamp and stunned the Gators in a 31-30 defeat. In the postgame press conference, Tebow gave UF supporters a moment they'll never forget.

He promised reporters and fans that "you have never seen any player in the entire country play as hard as I will play the rest of this season; and you'll never see someone push the rest of the team as hard as I will push everybody the rest of this season; and you'll never see a team play harder than we will the rest of this season."

Indeed. No team came within 10 points of the Gators the rest of the way. Florida ended the campaign on a 10-game winning streak and earned its second national title in three years. The text of what has become known as "The Promise" has been placed on a plaque that now hangs outside Florida's practice facility for all to see.

Why he's here

Tebow is one of the most recognizable college football players in recent memory, a player who has a huge Q Rating thanks to his football skills and social stances. He won two national titles, a Heisman Trophy and was a first-round NFL draft pick in 2010. Florida and SEC fans know the mark he made on the game, even if he hasn't necessarily translated that success to professional athletic exploits. It's hard to imagine anyone better fit to top this list.