Tebow Time!

So, five and a half games ago, the Denver Broncos made a change at starting Quarterback from Kyle Orton to former Florida Gators star and all around good guy, Tim Tebow.  For those who don't know, Tebow won the Heisman trophy as a sophmore at Florida and was also part of 2 National Championship teams.  Tebow is regarded by many as the Greatest College Football player ever.

Tebow is also a devout Christian.  His parents are Christian Missionaries to the Phillipines, and they homeschooled Tim.  In fact, while pregnant with Tim, doctors recommended that Tim's mom have an abortion due to the fact that they were expecting Tim to be still born.  Tim's mom refused to have the abortion and Tim was born alive and well.

In the 2010 NFL draft, then Broncos coach Josh McDaniels, traded up into the first round to select Tebow, much to the chagrin of the so called football experts.  The experts said Tebow's skills wouldn't translate to the NFL...his throwing motion is too long, he's not accurate enough, he runs too much and he's going to get hurt.  But, McDaniels took a chance because he liked Tebow's intangibles...his leadership skills, will to win and eagerness to work harder than just about anyone.

Well, late in the 2010 season, the Broncos were mired in a 3-10 season and they fired McDaniels.  At the time, Broncos fans were clamoring to see Tebow, so the Broncos threw them a bone and started Tebow the last 3 games of the 2010 season.  Tebow went 1-2 during those starts and showed potential.  Broncos fans believed Tebow was destined to be the QB for the 2011 season.

Then the NFL strike happened and Tebow missed the entire offseason of work with the new coaching staff and his receivers.  When the season started, Kyle Orton was installed as the starting QB because he was better in a "traditional" NFL offense.  Four and a half games into this season, the Broncos were 1-3 and getting spanked by the San Diego Chargers.  The Broncos switched to Tebow at QB and he nearly led them to a victory over the Chargers.  Tebow was named the starter, and won his opener against Miami, leading an improbable comeback from 15 points down in the final 5 minutes to tie the game, and then win it in overtime.  A week later the Broncos and Tebow got embarassed by the Detroit Lions.

At this point, the coaching staff made a change in the offensive philosophy of the team.  They abandoned the "traditional" NFL offense and started running a more "college" style offense that Tebow excels in.  The outcome of this change is a 3 game winning streak to get back to 5-5 and the Broncos are officially in the playoff hunt.  Tebow hasn't been great, but he's been good when needed, like last night against the Jets.  Tebow and the offense had been stymied all night, but with 5 minutes left and 95 yards to go, Tebow led the team down the field and ran the final 20 yards to score the go ahead touchdown, leading the Broncos to a 17-13 win.

Tebow's critics, and there are many, say emphatically, that he will never be a successful QB in the NFL.  They are saying the same things that they said about him when he came out of college.  His throwing motion is too long, his passes are too inaccurate, and he's going to get hurt running the ball so much.  And, to some degree they are right, he does have his flaws as a QB.  But there's another side to Tebow.  His teammates want to play better when he's in there.  Since he's been the starting QB, the offensive line as improved, and the defense has really stepped up their play.  I believe it's because they know that if they can just keep the game close, Tebow will find a way to win it at the end.

I don't know why so many people are critical of Tim Tebow.  His story is remarkable, and he's a genuinely good person by all accounts.  Everyone who know his says it's impossible not to like and root for him.  I know some people are turned off by the fact that he's out in the open about his faith in Jesus Christ.  I believe old school football guys don't want to admit that a guy can play the game the way Tebow plays it and be successful.  Whatever the reason so many people dislike Tebow, I for one don't think they should count him out.  Tim Tebow is a guy who has proven his doubters wrong every time. 

And frankly, how can you go against a guy that has the Bible as his playbook?  I couldn't resist throwing that one in there.  I don't think I've ever rooted as hard for a player to do well as I am rooting for Tim Tebow to do well.  I know that I've never seriously prayed for an NFL football player, but I do pray for Tim Tebow.  I think he's a young man who has been given great gifts and now he has a forum to do a lot of great things with those gifts...great things that go beyond the football field.  He's already building a hospital in the Phillipines.  Selfishly, I want to see him succeed as an NFL QB because I want the Broncos to win another Super Bowl.  But most importantly, I want Tim Tebow to be successful so I can use him as an example for my kids of what faith and hard work can lead to.  My 8 year old already thinks Tim Tebow is great and I want to see that continue.

So here's hoping Tim Tebow and the Broncos continue this run for the foreseeable future, and here's hoping the Denver Broncos leadership has the foresight and vision to continue to support Tim Tebow.

Finger Lickin' Good BBQ Chicken

My second foray into smoking meat products came yesterday when I smoked some chicken legs and thighs.  I did 10 legs and 8 thighs, which was just about the maximum amount of food I could fit in my little smoker. 

To make this chicken, I did extensive research to determine the best cooking methods.  I went to roughly 8 websites before deciding on a cooking method.  Giving credit where credit is due, I found the brine and rub recipe at www.smoker-cooking.com, but I'll duplicate it here for 1 stop shopping. 

First I made the following brine...combine 1 gallon of boiling water with 3/4 cup of salt, 1/4 cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons Paprika and 1 tablespoon ground black pepper.  Ensure the salt and sugar is dissolved before adding paprika and pepper.  This is enough for roughly 3-4 lbs. of chicken.  I made 2 batches of the brine.

For separated thighs and legs, they only need to brine for about 90 minutes, so after chilling the brine, add your chicken for 90 minutes or so.  There are suggestions online for brine times, so just dig around...you can find everything for cooking online.  I brined my chicken for 90 minutes.

After brining, I rinsed the chicken and dusted with the following rub:

2 tablespoons onion powder
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon crushed oregano
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon powdered cayenne pepper

While I was preparing all this, I was also preheating my smoker.  I got it to 240ish degrees Fahrenheit.  I loaded the chicken, and then added 2ish handfuls of hickory chips to the coals for the smoke.  The hickory chips had been soaked in water for 4-5 hours.  After about 45 minutes or so, I added another 2ish handfuls of hickory chips.  Total time on the smoker was 1 hour and 20 minutes, which got the chicken to 140 degrees.

Then, because we were hungry, I moved the chicken to my gas grill to finish.  I had the gas grill set to 350 or so, and I let the chicken go for another 30-40 minutes.  I was having difficulty with my meat thermometer, so I may have gotten the chicken past 180 degrees, but dark meat is flexible, so it was still juicy.  For the last 15 minutes on the grill, I was brushing with my homemade sauce, which let the sauce caramelize nicely.

I served the chicken with extra sauce for those who wanted more.  The chicken was moist and delicious.  The hickory smoke added just the right amount of flavor, the rub and the sauce came together nicely, and finishing on the grill was a good move as it allowed the outside of the chicken to crisp, while still keeping the inside moist.  I served 4 adults and 6 kids, and there was nothing left over.  I cannot wait to make this again...it was a lot of work, but very worth it.