As I have been watching some of the college football bowl games this week (I missed Baylor’s bowl game), it came to my attention that Robert Griffin, III, quarterback of Baylor, has also been vocal about his faith. He won the Heisman trophy this year and has yet to make a decision as to whether he will enter the NFL draft in April or return to Baylor for another season. While I want him to play for the Redskins since we REALLY need a quarterback, I also want athletes to complete their education. Anyway, that’s a post for another time. This post is a follow-up to the one below about Christianity and the NFL.
Last year, as Tim Tebow was playing his final season in college, there was a significant focus on his faith, as there has been this year in his rookie NFL season with Denver. So, as much media coverage as there has been on Robert Griffin III, why is there not as much discussion about his faith? He clearly has some serious athletic skills and talents, similar to Tim Tebow. RG3, as he is known, led his college team to winning seasons and has broken tons of records. He led his team to a victory in the Alamo Bowl game last night, competing in the highest score in regulation game in college football history. So, why not so much coverage about his faith? When I look to find information about his faith, I find lots of blog entries from people close to the Baylor team or that follow college sports much more closely than I do. There are a few articles online about his faith. But not nearly the amount of coverage that Tim Tebow’s faith received while he was playing in college.
So, what gives? It seems that the media loves to focus on one aspect of an athlete rather than the whole person. So, they focus on Tim Tebow’s faith and focus on RG3′s athletic skills. The same could be said of other stories that the media covers (or not). Focus on one aspect of the political race, focus on one aspect of the war, focus on one aspect of anything, rather than giving the full picture. Ugh! I want to know about the whole person, the whole story. Then, I can make a decision about who to support, what I think, etc. Anyway…another of my two cents. 
So, my husband reminded me of a few things that make Tim Tebow and RG3 a bit different in the minds of the media. Tim Tebow attended University of Florida, a public state university, while RG3 attends Baylor University, a private Baptist university. So, maybe the media thinks that anyone that attends a private Baptist university would already be spiritual or religious and therefore, there is no need to discuss it.