Pablo Torre is out with a new report, and this time ESPN and SEC Network college football analyst Tim Tebow is the subject of an unflattering investigation.
In a new episode of Pablo Torre Finds Out released Thursday, Torre details Tebow’s involvement with a Christian organization called Life Surge, which contracted the former star quarterback to give speeches at dozens of events over the past five years. Life Surge, as Torre explains, is a nationwide Christian organization that holds events across the country featuring prominent speakers and entertainers, from athletes to television personalities to comedians and musicians.
Tebow quickly became a headliner of sorts for the organization, with plans to speak at Life Surge over 20 times this calendar year. Torre reports that Tebow earns between $50,000 and $100,000 per appearance, a figure that Life Surge declined to confirm. In other words, Torre presents a convincing case that Tebow is intimately involved in the organization.
Life Surge, Torre reports, typically charges attendees around $30 for a ticket to one of its events where Tebow is a speaker, but the low price is quickly revealed as an entry point to get people in the door. Much of Life Surge’s events, as multiple former attendees told Torre, are designed to convince people to sign up for the organization’s supposedly educational classes on how to navigate the stock market or make money in real estate. Introductory courses are sold to attendees for $97, but that is only the beginning of a much larger cash grab that Torre contends is predatory.
Those who attend the introductory courses are then presented with a pamphlet that includes several options, all upwards of $10,000, with some reaching as high as $50,000, to receive what is framed as mentorship and coaching on how to succeed in the stock market or flipping real estate. Central to Life Surge’s message is that achieving financial success can help advance the mission of Christianity.
To help people afford the five-figure cost of Life Surge’s mentorship, the organization provided third-party brokers at these introductory classes who would help attendees apply for one or more credit cards at temporary 0% interest rates (which would later rise as high as 30%) to pay for the services. Life Surge also reportedly encouraged attendees to take out lines of credit on their homes and retirement accounts to afford their mentorship.
Tim Tebow, the organization’s most front-facing and prominent speaker, declined to comment when reached through multiple avenues by Pablo Torre.
It is unclear if Tebow was aware of Life Surge’s alleged predatory practices. Torre concludes his episode by implying the ESPN analyst has either been maximally ignorant of the organization’s business model or complicit in its practices.
Tebow is far from the only sports media figure to participate in a Life Surge event, though he is certainly the most prominent regular speaker. Others to have spoken at Life Surge include former ESPN anchor Sage Steele, ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit, Fox college football analyst Urban Meyer, CBS NFL analyst Russell Wilson, Fox MLB analyst David Ortiz, and many others.
ESPN declined to comment when reached about Tim Tebow’s involvement in Life Surge.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.