Tim Tebow Offers Different Perspective of Fight Involving Aaron Hernandez

The former Florida Gators star quarterback shed new light on a bar fight that occurred during his time at UF

Tebow took the chance to defend a controversial former teammate | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

A story Florida Gators fans have heard for more than a decade just got another angle, this time from Tim Tebow himself.

During an episode of comedian Andrew Schulz’s “Flagrant” podcast, the Florida Gators legend added some context to a heavily covered bar fight involving former teammate and future convicted murderer Aaron Hernandez.

Originally, reports said the fight started when a 17-year-old Hernandez tried to leave a bar without paying his tab. According to a police report, he punched the manager and ran out shortly after.

Tebow, who told police that he stepped in to break things up, said Hernandez was getting hit with vile insults and was actually showing restraint before everything escalated.

“What people were saying to him was so horrifically evil. We were trying to leave. What people were saying was so mean, racist and dehumanizing to him,” Tebow said. “They were trying to go at him more than me. He was so patient. They were poking him. It was so disrespectful.”

Tebow said he was guiding Hernandez out of The Swamp’s original location on West University Avenue, but the harassment kept coming, and Hernandez eventually lost his composure.

“We got downstairs and almost all the way out. And they kept going, and they kept poking him, saying all these things,” Tebow said. “And then he turned and busted the guy's eardrum. The story is painted like he was looking for trouble. I'm not defending his actions... I'm just saying, if you’re talking about him, at least paint it accurately.”

Gainesville PD noted a complaint for felony battery, but Hernandez never faced any formal charges.

The former Gators tight end went on to win a National Championship at Florida and earned several major accolades, like the John Mackey Award and a First-team All-American selection.

Still, his career will always be scarred by his 2015 murder conviction and the double homicide indictment he was ultimately acquitted of. 

Hernandez died on April 19, 2017, after committing suicide in his jail cell just five days after being acquitted of the 2012 Boston double homicide of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado.

While Tebow provided a unique perspective for that particular incident, he explained that he does not condone any of the criminal events that unfolded later on in Hernandez’s life.

After three seasons in the NFL, the former Heisman Trophy winner spent several years in minor league baseball before fully shifting his focus to philanthropy through the Tebow Foundation.