Tim Tebow Hired By ESPN But Still Pursuing NFL Dream

Tim Tebow hasn't given up on his NFL dream but he has found himself another job. ESPN announced on Monday that Tebow has been hired as a college football analyst. Tebow, who won the 2007 Heisman Trophy during a standout collegiate career at Florida, has reached a multi-year agreement with ESPN to join the SEC Network launching in August 2014. He will make his first ESPN appearance on Jan. 6, 2014 during pregame coverage before the BCS National Championship Game.

“I am so excited that ESPN has given me this incredible opportunity,” Tebow said in a press release issued by ESPN. “When I was six years old I fell in love with the game of football, and while I continue to pursue my dream of playing quarterback in the NFL, this is an amazing opportunity to be part of the unparalleled passion of college football and the SEC.”

CLICK HERE for full ESPN press release

Tebow, 26, was released by the New England Patriots before the start of the 2013 NFL season and did not find a new team during the campaign. Upon being cut by the Patriots, Tebow made plain his continued desire to play quarterback in the NFL. According to the ESPN release, Tebow's contract will not keep him from returning to the NFL.

Despite not appearing in a single football game this past season, Tebow was the most-searched athlete in 2013, according to search engine Bing. To secure the services of the popular but polarizing quarterback, ESPN may have outbid FOX Sports and CBS Sports. Less than a month before ESPN announced the hire, Jason McIntyreof The Big Lead reported that a bidding war brewing among media outlets for Tebow.

While there was apparently strong interest in Tebow as a television analyst there has been a noted lack of interest in him as a NFL quarterback despite a 8-6 career record. Before his brief summer stint in New England, Tebow had been released by the New York Jets in April 2013 following a tumultuous 2012 season in which he was lightly used as the team struggled. Tebow arrived in New York by way of a trade with the Denver Broncos following his breakout 2011 season.