Tim-tebow-hurtSaturday night the earth shook and grown men wearing jorts openly wept when Tim Tebow lay motionless on the Bermuda Grass of Commonwealth Stadium. Tebow’s eyes rolled back in his head after his head crashed into the knee of a teammate (great photo below) following a bone-jarring hit. Tebow was briefly knocked out and suffered a concussion and spent the night in the hospital. He was released Sunday. We’ve put together a handy guide for those of you who need to get up-to-speed on what this all means for the No. 1 Gators.

The player who wrecked Tim Tebow: Kentucky redshirt freshman DE Taylor Wyndham. He’s from South Carolina. If he seems undersized for a DE at 6-foot-4, 230 lbs, it is because he played LB in high school. He’s an honor roll student and a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. A friendship with the deeply religious Tebow beckons. Odd and uninteresting fact: The last name of Ali Later’s character in Legally Blonde? Taylor-Windham. Far out! [Kentucky Sports]

Tim_tebow_hurtShould Tebow have been on the field? Tebow was ill prior to the game, and vomited into a plastic bag while being carted off the field 30 minutes after the hit. Tebow was dominant in the first quarter, when Florida took a 31-0 lead. Strangely, the Gators lead with 4:30 left in the third was only 31-7. Had Florida lost interest after racing to the huge early advantage?

Or might UF still be in the process of finding its way after losing its best WR (Louis Murphy) and its best playmaker (Percy Harvin) to the NFL? A week after a sluggish win over Tennessee, this was Florida’s final tuneup before an Oct. 10 showdown against LSU. So yes, Tebow should have been on the field. The offense looked crisp for a 15-minute stretch against Kentucky. And then struggled for the next 25. Plus, freakish, fluky things happen in college football – a touchdown, followed by an onside kick or a UF turnover, and you’re all of a sudden talking about a 31-21 game with a quarter left. Yes, Tim Tebow should have been on the field. This isn’t even up for debate.

Meet Tebow’s backup: John Brantley. A highly-acclaimed prep QB – he was the 2006 high school Gatorade player of the year – Brantley originally committed to Texas, then changed his mind and picked Florida, where his father played. Brantley redshirted as a freshman, and has seen garbage-time action in the last two seasons. The big difference is that he’s nothing like Tim Tebow as a QB. Brantley is a pocket passer. This, obviously, would mean a radical change to the UF offense. The Gators are lucky to have a bye week. “If Brantley played at Georgia or USC or at any school that runs a pro-style offense, he could replace the starter seamlessly. The problem at Florida is that the coaching staff will have to adjust the offense to fit Brantley’s skill set, which is more similar to Matt Barkley’s than it is to Tebow’s. [SI]

How does Tebow’s Injury Impact the Heisman Race? Too early to tell. The Gators haven’t even faced a ranked team yet, so it is impossible to have Tebow atop any Heisman list. Jahvid Best of Cal was doing fine until he ran into a wall at Oregon (55 yards rushing, just 69 yards of total offense). If he doesn’t rebound strong against USC Saturday, forget it. Miami’s Jacory Harris took a major hit when he struggled against VT, but he’ll have opportunities to rebound (Oklahoma this week). It won’t be a popular pick, but Houston QB Case Keenum is our leader right now. He has been incredible for the Cougars (1,160 yards, eight TDs, wins over Oklahoma State and Texas Tech). And laugh all you want, but currently, we’d put Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen ahead of Texas QB Colt McCoy. This isn’t likely to last; Clausen’s best WR went down for the season. Ultimately, Tebow will heal, beat LSU and Ole Miss, and if he gets by Alabama in the SEC title game, capture another Heisman.