One of northeast Florida’s most storied athletic stars will be making a homecoming of sorts later this year to speak before a local nonprofit club. Tim Tebow, former NFL quarterback and professional baseball player, will be speaking at the September 30th meeting of the Daytona Beach Quarterback Club, the club announced on its social media on Monday.
He will be followed at the November 11th by Marty Smith, a sports reporter with over two decades of experience covering football, basketball and NASCAR for ESPN and other outlets. So far Tebow and Smith are the only two speakers confirmed by the club for their slate of ten meetings in football season 2024.
Those looking to join the Quarterback Club can do so for a $499.00 annual membership fee, available via the club’s website. Those with additional questions about membership are asked to contact the club’s membership chairman, John Long at jlong@foundationrp.com.
Florida Legend Tim Tebow
Was Tim Tebow the greatest college football QB of all time?
9,285 Pass Yds
88 Pass TDs
2,947 Rush Yds
57 Rush TDs
2x BCS National Champ
2x SEC Champ
Heisman Trophy Winner@GatorsFB | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/BSR7gilKcb— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) March 6, 2021
September guest Tim Tebow rose to prominence as the quarterback for the University of Florida Gators football team, where he led the team to two BCS national championships, won the Heisman Trophy in 2007, and was named AP College Football Player of the Year that same year. He also became known for writing Bible verses on his eye black, prompting the NCAA to ban face messaging.
Tebow entered the NFL Draft in 2009, being selected 25th overall in the first round by the Denver Broncos. Over the 2010 and 2011 NFL seasons he’d work his way from backup to starter, eventually leading the Broncos to an unlikely playoff win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in January 2012. He was traded that offseason.
After brief signings with the New York Jets, New England Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles, and Jacksonville Jaguars, Tebow’s football career seemingly ended in 2021. His post-Broncos regular season career consisted of only a dozen games for the Jets in 2012.
During a period away from football, Tebow joined the New York Mets’ minor league baseball system from 2016 to 2021. Playing baseball for the first time since 2005 in high school, he rose from the lowest rung of the minors, Class A, all the way to Class AAA in 2019, one step away from the major leagues. After posting disappointing numbers in 2019 and missing the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tebow retired from baseball in 2021. He’s since launched a successful career as an inspirational author and speaker.
Respected Herald Marty Smith
Some sports media news: ESPN has signed Marty Smith to a multi-year contract extension.
Smith will continue his jack-of-all-trades role beginning at next week’s PGA Championship, where he will handle SportsCenter coverage and post-round interview duties at Kiawah. pic.twitter.com/G1sWLQyOEw
— James Colgan (@jamescolgan26) May 11, 2021
Having attended school in his hometown of Pearisburg, Virginia, November club guest Marty Smith entered sports journalism after attending Carson-Newman University and Radford University. He started out covering high school athletics for The Roanoke Times, before being hired by The Washington Post as a beat writer for Virginia Tech University’s football program.
Smith made the jump to professional sports journalism in 1999, when he was brought on as a senior writer for NASCAR.com. Stock car racing would become his primary beat for years to follow, and it would soon launch him into the world of sports television.
In 2006 after a stint with the now-defunct Speed Channel, ESPN hired Smith as their chief NASCAR reporter, where he’d go on to contribute coverage on-air for SportsCenter, NASCAR Countdown, and NASCAR Now. Smith has since started a podcast, Marty Smith’s America.
Over the course of his career, Smith has interviewed some of the biggest stars in sports, including NASCAR’s Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon, Real Madrid soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo, golf legend Tiger Woods, and Alabama football coach Nick Saban. He’s also become a New York Times bestselling author with multiple books to his credit.
Chris Gollon is a Flagler County resident since 2004, as well as a staple of the local independent music scene and avid observer of Central Florida politics, arts, and recreation.
