Tim Tebow's religious beliefs have sparked debate about the presence of faith in pro football.For the Jets' Sione Pouha, football and personal faith were never directly connected because they didn't have to be.
There was never a conscious decision to display his beliefs on the field because doing so would make Sunday different from every other. It would interrupt how he's come to accept his religion and the way he practices it.
"I never like to distract the flow by a formal, concrete layout," said Pouha, a devout member of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "Obviously, there are staples of centering yourself, saying a prayer and all those types of things, but I don't really have anything set in stone.
"For me, personally, that kind of interrupts what the flow is for the day."
Pouha stressed that all players were different and that there are countless ways to express such feelings. In Denver, for example, the buzz surrounding Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow has placed personal faith in a highly-salient spotlight alongside the NFL. Tebow's praying motion, knelt down on one knee with his head in hands, was morphed into an internet phenomena where fans posted pictures of themselves mimicking the action in exotic costumes or bizarre locations.
On game day, some fans arrive dressed as clergymen, or in custom No. 15 jerseys with the name "Jesus" written on the back.
Stephen Tulloch, a linebacker for the Detroit Lions, knelt down in mocking prayer after sacking Tebow in Week 8.
And somewhere in between, a polarizing player and outspoken Christian, one who wore Bible verses on his eye black and worked as a missionary before his days as a two-time National Champion at Florida, continues to see the attention around him grow.
"At the end of the day, it's more important who you are than how you play on the field," Tebow said Tuesday. "What is special is that we're blessed with such a big platform and if we can take that platform and influence the next generation, encourage them to do it the right way, then ultimately, we're doing something that's successful with our lives."
Jets defensive back Antonio Cromartie was asked about Tebow on Monday. Aside from the glaring statistics — Tebow was 2-for-8 last week against the Kansas City Chiefs — there was one thing that stuck out.
"The biggest thing that stands out to me is a guy that's outspoken about his Christianity," Antonio Cromartie said. "Actually, I think we need more men to be like that in this world. I think the world would be a whole lot better."
The reason for the two becoming synonymous, says Joseph L. Price, the author of "Rounding the Bases: Baseball and Religion in America" and "From Season to Season: Sports as American Religion", is multi-faceted.
He brought up Fran Tarkenton, a quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings and Giants, who was just as outspoken about his faith. The son of a Presbyterian minister, Tarkenton would write about and bring up his beliefs almost as often as Tebow, but with none of the press coverage. Many newspapers at the time, Price said, were instructed to remove religious content from sports stories.
"Part of the phenomena we're seeing with Tebow is not nearly that he is a gifted athlete and a devout Christian, but that the social media and the immediacy of it's impact have generated a great deal of the fervor about his position," Price said.
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Price, a professor of religion at Whittier College, he said he's most interested in how Tebow continues to reference and utilize his faith amid the groundswell of attention and headlines, amid the taunting and support.
During Super Bowl XLIV, Tebow appeared in two 30-second ads for the socially conservative group Focus on the Family, which spawned a horde of detractors blasting him for the group's pro-life message. He co-wrote a 257-page autobiography, which detailed his faith and, in certain passages, his commitment to abstinence. In a day, it jumped into the Top 25 on Amazon.com.
Tebow, though, remains undaunted and consistent, ignoring the rants about him online and elsewhere. He said the only thing that bothered him about Tulloch's celebration was that the Broncos surrendered a sack. When asked by the Denver media about the "Jesus" jerseys bearing his number, he said it was important not to judge the owners without understanding their intent.
As with everything else, Tebow said God would have the final say.
"At the end of the day," Tebow said, "people will forget the touchdowns or championships or whatever it is you accomplished on the field, but what matters is how you treat people and how you handle yourself."
Conor Orr: corr@starledger.com