HOOVER, Ala. — So Tim Tebow took the podium Wednesday at SEC Media Days, broke bread and turned the copious amounts of Dr Pepper into wine.

OK, he didn’t. That’s silly. But the kid still inspired. During an event where three days are devoted to SEC football before the first practice and some of our worlds begin to revolve around those 12 programs, Tebow reminded us what really matters.

Yeah, Tebow. The 20-year-old with a national championship ring and a Heisman Trophy — the quarterback leading a national championship contender — is the one providing the reality check.

“If I can change a kid’s life for the better, that’s much more important to me than going out there and beating Georgia or Florida State or whatever team it is,” Tebow said. “That’s very special to me, but it doesn’t come close to having the ability to put a smile on a kid’s face or go to a hospital and see a girl who is about to die smile because you’re there.”

Tebow cries after losses with national TV cameras rolling. So you can only imagine how much he cares about those in need. During Florida’s three breaks from classes, Tebow traveled to three foreign countries — the Philippines, Croatia and Thailand — to preach when others went on vacation.

He helped circumcise children in the Philippines who desperately needed the surgeries. He ministered to two prisons back in April. And yeah, sure, that adds to the famed Tebow legend. He runs! He passes! He circumcises!

But his service work, regardless of your religious affiliation, is also inspiring. This young man keeps a 3.68 GPA, holds a full-time job getting ready for the season, speaks to numerous organizations and still makes time to help others.

When you truly care, when your priorities are truly in the right order, it’s easy, you know? It’s a lesson for a lot of us.

“My dream, my goal, is to be someone like (former Florida quarterback) Danny Wuerffel was to me,” Tebow said. “It’s to be someone that a parent can say, ‘Hey, this kid did it the right way.’ They can say to their kid, ‘I want you to be like them.’ That’s always been my dream and my goal more than winning a trophy or winning a championship.”

He already inspired his coach. Earlier this month, Urban Meyer took a mission trip with his wife and three children to the Dominican Republic.

“Tim has done a lot of things that opened my eyes, and that’s one of them,” Meyer said. “It was a life-changing experience.”

Go ahead, if you’re a fan of another SEC school, and show disdain for Tebow the Florida quarterback. That’s normal.

But to dislike Tebow the person is forgetting what should be important in life.

“We’ve got guys going to the hospitals and really giving up a lot of their free time, changing people’s lives,” Tebow said. “That’s much more important than football. Sometimes, it’s hard for people to see because football becomes their world. And they can’t see outside of it. But if you really look at it, it’s just a game that people get very excited about. And I’m one of those people. Fortunately, I’ve been blessed to see outside of that.”

Still, a flaw has to exist somewhere with Tebow. Did he smoke a cigarette in high school or something? Sip a beer?

And there it was, on the second floor of the Wynfrey Hotel — the Heisman Trophy. It was there for everyone to see.

“It’s here?” Tebow asked. “I didn’t know that.”

Ha! Whatever. Finally, a flaw. He brought the Heisman Trophy to Hoover with him. How pompous.

But Chuck Dunlap, an SEC spokesperson, broke in and said, “To clarify, Nissan, an SEC corporate sponsor, brought that.”

Oh. Never mind.

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