Got pocket presence?

I decided last night that my debut Sports Blabber blog post was going to be on none other than...(drumroll please)...Tim Tebow. That's right, the senior quarterback for the Florida Gators.

Tim Tebow has had quite the storybook career so far: 6,390 passing yards, 67 TD passes, 2037 rushing yards, 43 rushing TDs, a Heisman trophy (becoming the first sophomore ever to win the Heisman), led his team to a BCS championship, and the list goes on and on and on. He is entering his senior season at Florida, hoping to repeast on last years championship and adding another Heisman to his trophy closet.

So it seems with his credentials that Tebow should be a top prospect in the draft, right? Wrong. Tebow is the Tyler Hansbrough of college football. Great player, extremely hard worker, dominates opponents. But, there is a side to their games that is missing. Hansbrough, arguably one of the best college basketball players EVER, will not get the referee adoration in the NBA that he so enjoyed in college. Many people thought he was a guaranteed top draft prospect in his first few years at North Carolina. But now, some bloggers/analysts think that his 13th pick in the NBA draft was far too high, considering the level of skill and calibur that was available. For Tebow, it is much of the same. Tebow's biggest weakness is his ability (or lack thereof) to work outside of the "system" offense.

System offenses often allow for quarterbacks to get away with not being able to read defenses effectively or quickly, relying on small dump passes and screens. Quarterbacks are able to start in a shotgun formation where their feet are planted and they are ready to throw once they get the ball, or scramble away if there is nothing open. There are no drop steps, much like in the NFL, where the QB scans the field for open receivers. The fact that Tebow has operated in a system offense for his career may cause him to drop significantly in the draft, especially if he's going up against other quarterbacks of the same or higher calibur (Ahem, Sam Bradford) who use an NFL-style offense. Tebow needs to develop himself less as a scrambler, and more as a pocket passer with the awareness to read defenses.

All is not lost for Tebow. It is possible for him to make neccessary changes. Florida recently brought on quarterback coach Scott Loeffler, who will hopefully help Tebow develop more of a pro-style game. His arm strength, big body size, and brains will allow for him to change some of his game so he can be a better NFL quarterback and possibly go higher in the draft.

Let's just hope that the pro scouts are thinking the same thing.