For a man as religious as Tim Tebow, you’ve got to believe all this opposition is for a reason.

Day #2 at the Senior Bowl has come and gone, giving us a little more glimpse into Tim’s progression towards the NFL and yet another hurdle for the young quarterback. That first day of practice, with all the dropped snaps and so forth, with the spotlight burning directly above Tebow (no Bradford, no McCoy, no Klaussen…who else is there to talk about?), and with the storm clouds of controversy rolling in because of his Super Bowl ad, ended with a trip to the hospital. He had been charting a 103 degree fever throughout the day without knowing (or acknowledging) it and was later convinced by brother Robbie to go get checked out. He was originally reported to have strep throat (which wasn’t the case) and dehydration, was pumped full of fluids, and released late Monday night.

Tuesday morning, he was on the field bright and early, smiling and ready to roll for the NFL… See, I told you it would get better.

He mishandled one snap the whole day, looked much improved in the pocket and under center, and even managed some long balls, including a deep fade to a familiar target, Riley Cooper (who’s one handed grab of Tebow’s sideline fade was pretty sweet in itself). Tebow joked with reporters, made it clear that there was “no way, no shot” of him missing today’s practice, and was praised by Dolphin’s coach Tony Sporano (as North/South teams in the Senior Bowl are coached by NFL staffs…South got the Dolphins).

Sporano made it a point to tell reporters how pleased he was with the one day improvement in Tebow, as well as his ability to become comfortable with new things. He praised Tim’s ability to process information, to alter his game quickly to fit a new system or set of demands, and went on to speak of Tim’s overall intelligence of the game. Tim’s throws were coming out quicker, he had fewer mental flubs, and was a vast improvement over day 1.

The distractions about the Super Bowl ad didn’t abate, though, and many were beginning to wonder how this type of controversy would begin to affect his draftability. Basically, reporters were proposing that teams would begin to distance due to the divisive nature of the issue, especially considering their rather standoffishness with Tebow, who apparently hasn’t proved enough on film and who has to start all over again making people believe he can play the game.

How much more does this guy have to show you?

Anyway, Tuesday also afforded Tim the opportunity to reunite with Dan Mullen, as well as former defensive coach Greg Mattison, both of whom hugged their former quarterback and caught up for a while.

All in all, the second day was a 100% jump from the debacle that was on display the day before, and Tim’s hard work and ability to quickly absorb/adapt to new situations was on full display for admiration.

Even Riley Cooper (projected as a 3rd rounder) caught some attention, as his speed surprised many scouts, but the focus has been and will continue to be on Tebow’s massive shoulders. With a quarterback class that has many more questions than answers attached to it (How good is Bradford still? Can McCoy recover to be as good as he was? Is Klaussen worth a 1st round pick?), Tebow’s studying and “nose to the grind” ethic will make him stand out from the pack if his mechanics can continue to improve. He’s also got the whole low expectations thing going for him (as does Cooper), so teams who have sorely undervalued him may be upping his stock in their heads the more they see him work out.

Me? I’m just hoping he does drop out of the first round, so that a team doesn’t take him and place the future of their franchise on his shoulders. A second round pick will have time to grow, to learn, and won’t just be thrown to the NFL/media lions on some horrible team looking to try and fit a square peg into a round hole. Too many good quarterbacks are started to early in their careers, effectively destroying their chances at success by putting the whole team on their youthful shoulders, and for every Ben Roethlisberger and Matt Ryan out there who can step up to the plate, there are Ryan Leaf’s by the barrel that crumble and fail as teams simply expect them to start winning regardless of the lack of talent around them.

Tebow doesn’t need to be a first round savior, that’s the quickest way to ensure a short NFL career and a one way trip to the “Woulda, coulda, shoulda” file. I don’t want him to become a never-was like too many other Gator QBs (they really don’t do well in the NFL) and would hate to see him known as the next COX guy twenty years down the road, so let’s hope the pro maturation continues, but slowly and without too much attention. Again, I don’t think a first round draft is something Tim needs hung around his neck.

Hey, I could be wrong…Seems Tim Tebow has spend his whole life proving that to people.

Go Gators.

Josh Bauer is a Columnist for GatorTailgating.com.