Tim Tebow is one of the most well-known athletes in the NFL and since he is so high profile he often comes up in news stories that have nothing to do with football, including when his moniker was used as a nickname for a bill in the Virginia State Senate.
According to the Ashburn Patch, a new bill was proposed in the state that would allow home schooled students to try out and participate in organized school events, athletic teams and other public extracurricular activities. Currently in Virginia all home-schooled students are not allowed to participate in public school athletics.
Representatives in the state Congress and others refer to the legislation as the "Tebow Bill".
"Delegates voted 56-43 for House Bill 1442, which will be heard by the Senate Health and Education Committee Thursday. The bill, sponsored by Del. Robert Bell (R-Albemarle) would require public schools to allow home-schoolers to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities. Of the delegates who represent Loudoun in the General Assembly, only Tom Rust (R-86) voted against the measure."
Tebow is probably the most famous home schooled player in all of American sports and he himself was able to play and star on his local high school team in Florida. Tebow was recruited by the Florida Gators and coach Urban Meyer, where he won two national championships and a Heisman Trophy.
The bill made it through the House of Representatives and will be looked at by the state's Senate Health and Education Committee on Thursday and if it is approved, it will go to the full Senate for a vote.
The House vote went 56-43 in the Republican-dominated chamber and was supported by many politicians that said home schooled students had no way to participate in athletics and it was unfair for families that pay taxes for public school programs.
Critics of the bill said that the fact that the parents opted to home school their children was their own choice and that they "do not have the right of demanding special exceptions to their choice."
"I should be able to choose whether my kids play sports or not," said Brad Foster, the father of five athletic home-schooled boys in Culpeper.
According to SportsGrid.com, Tebow has had a number of things named after him including the legislation, such as a sandwich, racing dogs, an NCAA rule about eye black, a beer and multiple horses.
Some states in the past have tried to pass similar legislation, including Virginia itself, but that bill failed.
Tebow has been the subject of trade rumors all offseason after his first year with the New York Jets and it is likely that the team will deal him in the coming weeks.
