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NCAA Ruling Affected Tebow's Decision To Stay At UF

The Associated Press

Tim Tebow greets Gov. Charlie Crist during the Gator QB's visit Thursday to the Governor's Mansion.

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By MICK ELLIOTT | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 6, 2009

TAMPA - Even the NCAA wants to make sure Tim Tebow, the University of Florida's All-American person and star quarterback, is not tripped up by one of the organization's many rules and restrictions that often seem to go ridiculous extremes.

The NCAA, college sport's governing body, announced that it worked closely with the UF athletic department to ensure Tebow's eligibility was not unknowingly affected by fundraising related to his father's missionary work.

During a breakfast at the Governor's Mansion on Thursday, Gators coach Urban Meyer said the interpretation of the NCAA rules was one of the main reasons Tebow decided to remain at Florida to play his senior season next fall. If the rules had forbidden him from being affiliated with his father's ministry, Meyer said the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner most likely would not have returned.

In a statement today, NCAA officials said Tebow was not granted a waiver to be a fundraiser, as was recently reported, but clarified that his affiliation with his father's charities were studied and did not to violate NCAA bylaws.

"There is no waiver involved here,'' the statement said. "We have worked cooperatively with the University of Florida, the Southeastern Conference and the Tebow family for a few months now to help interpret and apply our bylaws related to extra benefits and promotional activities.''

The Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association is a charitable organization that includes Uncle Dick's Home, an orphanage. Since all donations to Uncle Dick's Home go directly to the orphanage and not to the Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association or the Tebow family, and no member of the Tebow family serves on its board of directors or staff, the NCAA reported there was no risk of a rules violation.

"As a result,'' the NCAA statement reads, "donations to the orphanage (or any other nonprofit entity) from the university or its boosters are allowed under our bylaws. NCAA bylaws prohibit an institution or boosters from providing benefits to a student-athlete or the student-athlete's family that generally aren't available to any student in the general student body.''

NCAA bylaws allow student-athletes to help promote educations, charitable or nonprofit entities, and the orphanage would fall under those categories, the NCAA said.

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