Florida protests ‘Tim Tebow’ event

A minor league baseball promotion asking the question “What would Tim Tebow do?” never got an answer. Instead it got a cease and desist letter from the University of Florida, forcing the event’s cancellation.

The Fort Myers Miracle of the Florida State League planned to hold a “What would Tim Tebow do?” night on Wednesday, featuring promise rings for fans, a jump pass for the first pitch and a local man named Tim Tebo attempting to walk on water.

It sounded like harmless fun, but then the university protested, demanding that the Miracle remove all references to Tebow from the promotion.

Under NCAA rules, it is not permissible to use the name or picture of a student-athlete in the promotion of a commercial product or service, Florida compliance director Jamie McCloskey wrote in the letter sent to the Miracle. Failure to abide by this rule would result in the student-athlete being ruled ineligible.

Instead, the Fort Myers team changed the theme of the promotion to “What would T.T. do?” The scaled back promotion offered fans wearing Gators gear the chance to win four tickets to the Florida-Arkansas game in a drawing.

Trivia time

How many Gators quarterbacks have won the Heisman Trophy?

Trouble in the Windy City

Not that we didn’t see it coming, but Milton Bradley’s relationship with the city of Chicago has turned sour, with the Cubs outfielder saying he faces hatred on a daily basis.

“I’m talking about hatred, period,” he told MLB.com. “I’m talking about when I go to eat at a restaurant, I’ve got to listen to waiters bad-mouthing me at another table, sitting in a restaurant. That’s what I’m talking about. Everything.”

Still, Bradley said he doesn’t regret coming to Chicago and playing for the Cubs.

“I regret that there are idiots in the world, that’s what I regret,” he said.

Gravy train

Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster to HokieSports.com on 305-pound tackle Cordarrow Thompson, who once weighed 340: “Gravy used to be a beverage for him.”

Trivia answer

Three -- Steve Spurrier, Danny Wuerffel and Tebow.

And finally

From Howard Bryant of ESPN.com: “There will be nothing clean about [Michael] Vick’s return to the public eye. All is not forgiven; and for a considerable portion of the public, it might not ever be. In close competition with Kobe Bryant -- and, to a lesser extent, Barry Bonds -- Vick remains perhaps the most polarizing player in the recent history of American team sports. He is no longer a person, but a symbol, and his return to the NFL only increases the intensity of his symbolism.”

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mike.penner@latimes.com