Tebow is set to speak at a Fathers' Day event open to the public. Tebow is scheduled to address the crowd with Shadow Mountain Community Church Pastor David Jeremiah for a combined 50 minutes, the North County Times reported Friday.
"We had (Tim) coming to our church and then he got traded to the Jets and couldn't come on Saturday night," Jeremiah told NFL Network on Sunday. "We couldn't handle the crowd on Sunday morning so we said lets go to the Stadium."
"I know what message he's going to bring. First of all, he's going to bring the message of who he is and he's the real deal in what he's committed to. He's going to talk about his faith in Christ, what it takes to be a champion in the NFL and how important his father is in in life.
"Tim is the kinda guy who not only says what he means but he lives what he means," Jeremiah added. "We spent a little time last night with my grandson and to have a hero like that in this day in age is pretty rare."
Qualcomm Stadium's gates opened at 6 a.m. PT, and it didn't take long for a sizeable crowd to show up. NFL Network reported that the parking lots surrounding the stadium's entrance gates were close to a third full, and some fans even had tailgating tents set up under which breakfast was being served. At least one fan was seen clad in a Jets No. 15 Tebow jersey.
"(I'm a) Tebow fan number one," 14-year-old Michelle Starrett, clad in a Jets Tebow jersey, told NFL Network. "He doesn't just talk, he actually lives out what he says."
Starrett, who switched allegiances from the Denver Broncos to the Jets following the Tebow trade, said she got up at 4 a.m. to attend the sermon. She wasn't the only person excited to see Tebow in the flesh.
"I haven't gone to church in a while. So this brought me back," Daniel Silva told NFL Network.
Silva added that he doesn't think Tebow will get booed Sunday -- unlike the last time he was in town.
"I made a joke I wonder if people are going to be booing? That would be rude in church, you don't boo in church," he said. "Hopefully people put colors and numbers aside. It's father's day. it shouldn't be about who he is, it should be about what he has to say."
Chargers fan Edward Walker, 30, arrived for the festivities wearing a Philip Rivers jersey. He said he put aside his team allegiance to join his Dad, who wanted to hear Tebow speak.
"What I hope for as a believer, I hope he can go to New York and shed some light on other people," Walker told NFL Network. "I did pray for him when I heard he was going to the Jets. I set football aside for that. I do think I'll get something spiritual out of this."
