The Georgia State basketball team, with its seven-game win streak, has its own Tim Tebow, only he answers to James Fields.
Similar to the NFL's Tebow, whose perceived lack of skill is offset by a 7-1 record as a starter, Fields has a certain quality his coach loves.
"He can't shoot, he can't pass, he's not really athletic; he just knows how to win," said Panthers coach Ron Hunter, whose team visits Utah Valley on Saturday. "Everyone laughs [when I call him Tebow], but that's who he is. Since he's been back, we're 7-1 and I'm not ashamed to say I'll call him that every time.
"I'll call him out, ‘It's Tim Tebow time.' I love him. I swear I love the kid."
Hunter originally thought Fields would come off the bench and play 12 minutes per game. Hunter's assumption was partially based on Fields' career averages of 3.7 points and 1.8 rebounds during his first three seasons, mostly spent as a reserve under former coach Rod Barnes.
Once practice started, Hunter noticed, in various competitions, Fields' team always won.
"He's one of those guys that you realize you can't win without him," Hunter said.
Fields disagreed with his coach's "no pass, no shot" description, but acknowledged he's pretty good at winning.
"I'll do whatever I can do to win," he said.
Fields played just 16 minutes in the season opener against Washington before suffering a strained groin. Without Fields, the Panthers lost that game and two others in Seattle.
Fields missed out in a win over McNeese State in the home opener, but recuperated and returned for a game at Samford. Put back in the starting lineup, he missed all four of his shots and had just one assist, -- but the Panthers won.
His stats, like those of Tebow's, are somewhat pedestrian. Fields averages 8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 4 assists per game. His value lies on the other end of the court; he's especially good at defense, enough that Hunter entrusts him to make most of the calls.
During the three-game losing streak, the Panthers allowed 80.3 points per game on 49.2 percent shooting. During the seven-game win streak, the Panthers have allowed 49.4 points on 32.6 percent shooting.
Hunter and the other players recognize that William & Mary, which they beat 66-34, won't be confused with Washington, which beat them 91-74. But they aren't squeaking by opponents. They have beaten them by an average of 24.3 points, and some of those games were over by halftime. That didn't occur often during the past three years.
"It's a whole different style of play," Fields said. "We are flying up and down. It's a whole different type of defense."
Counter to "Tebowing," in which the quarterback celebrates a touchdown by taking a knee and praying, Hunter, the Panthers coach, kids that he does the opposite when Fields shoots a 3-pointer. He yells, "No, no, no." It happened in the win over Florida International.
Of course, when the shot dropped, Hunter excitedly said, "Good shot, good shot, good shot," prompting everyone on his bench to start laughing.
"He's just a winner," guard Jihad Ali said of his inspirational teammate. "He just finds a way to win."
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