GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Tim Tebow doesn't want to win another Heisman Trophy, matching Ohio State's Archie Griffin as the only two-time winners of the award.

He wants more.

He wants championships.

But how much better can a Heisman Trophy winner get? Tebow thinks the bridge between very good and a true superstar isn't physical. It's in his head.

"I mean, that's what separates Tom Brady and Peyton Manning from every other quarterback, is their decision-making," Tebow said. "They're not more blessed as far as athletic ability; they just make better decisions on the field. They're more knowledgeable about the game. That's been my No. 1 focus this offseason, become more knowledgeable about the game so I can make better decisions on the field. That's what separates you from average to good and good to great."

Forget about awards and statistics. To measure how good the Gators' offense can be in 2008, watch not how far Tebow throws the ball but where he throws it, when and why.

Of course, Tebow hopes that improvement will make a difference where it matters most — finishing close games with final, winning drives. It was the Gators' downfall last season.

"It's a toughness factor, maturity, experience in big games, who wants it more, who is going to step up and make the big play," Tebow said. "So many things go into those last seconds of games. If David Tyree doesn't make that catch for New York (in the Super Bowl), then everybody is talking about the undefeated season for the Patriots and nobody looks at the Giants any more. It could be the smallest thing. Those are the things we have to get better at."

Does he feel the pressure as a returning Heisman winner?

"At the University of Florida, every year there's gonna be pressure," Tebow said. "No matter what happened the previous year, what trophies you won, it's the University of Florida. The quarterback's always gonna have pressure."

"I don't really care too much about it. I've never really been one to worry about pressure too much. I'm just going out there, playing a sport that I love and I'm very passionate about. What pressure do I have? I'm excited about the season. I'm not worried about what's gonna happen or if I can repeat, anything like that. I love playing. So I think when you love playing as much as I do, you're as passionate about it, you don't worry about the negative or the naysayers, what people are going to say."

Keeping it all in perspective is Tebow's religious faith. He went on three missionary trips over the summer. He speaks at prisons, at religious gatherings. He almost has to be physically pulled away from children seeking his autograph to go to team meetings after practice.

Even Archie Griffin, the lone two-time Heisman winner at Ohio State in 1974-75, said in an interview over the summer: "Tim Tebow is an outstanding young man and he's doing terrific things in the community and beyond with the missionary work he's doing and all the things he's doing in Florida. I think people will give the Heisman Trophy to the person they think deserves to win. ... (But) his citizenship is admirable. You don't see kinks in his armor at all. And that's something that voters do consider when they are voting."

But Griffin also realizes, things will be different this fall for Tebow. He's a marked man, more than ever.

"People take a little extra effort when they know they've got to play against you," Griffin said. "And when they hit you, they hit you a little harder and sometimes they even make comments about hitting a Heisman Trophy winner and how tough you are as a Heisman Trophy winner. Yeah, he'll get quite a bit of that, I think. We used to run that option play, and whether I got the pitchout or not, I would get hit."

There's no question, a pounding is coming — emotionally and physically — this fall for Tebow from SEC rivals, from those who want him to fail. But maybe Tebow's perspective in life gives everyone a good view at how he intends to handle it all.

"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, see her smile because you're there to see her. I mean, you can't put a price on it, on what that does for me."

"Most of the time when I go see kids like that or do something like that, it does more for me than I do for that person. So you can't really put a price on it because it's experiences that are more than just obligations or more than just, I have to go do something. It's much more special than that."