By CHRISTOPHER RAMIREZ

Tim Tebow may have a Heisman Trophy, but he doesn’t have the respect of at least one Oklahoma defensive player.

Tebow, the Florida Gators quarterback, has combined to run and throw for more than 3,000 yards and 40 touchdowns this season. He was named the SEC offensive player of the year by the Associated Press, was a finalist for the 2008 Heisman Trophy and has led his team to the BCS national championship game.

Yet that doesn’t mean he would be anywhere near the best signal caller if he played in the Big 12 Conference, according to Sooner cornerback Dominique Franks, who will be lining up against Tebow at Dolphin Stadium.

“I’d say he’d probably be about the fourth best quarterback in our conference,” Franks said.

He suggested that teammate Sam Bradford, Texas Tech’s Graham Harrell and Texas’ Colt McCoy were all better than Tebow, and added that because of Tebow’s running style, he is easier to defend.

“It’s going to be a lot easier for us to prepare to stop the run than having to face a quarterback that might throw the ball 40 or 50 times a game,” Franks said.

Franks, a sophomore starter for Oklahoma who has four interceptions this season, is the first player to deliver a verbal jab as the teams prepare for Thursday’s game. The Sooner defense, ranked 63rd nationally out of 119 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision, has repeatedly been singled out as Oklahoma’s biggest flaw.

Franks’ opinion, however, is not shared by Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops.

“We got great respect for him,” Stoops said of Tebow. “You know, there are not a lot
of Heisman Trophy winners running around anywhere, so it speaks for itself.”

Tebow, the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner, finished third in this year’s voting for the award behind McCoy and the overall winner Bradford, despite receiving the highest number of first-place votes. Through 13 games, he has thrown for 2,515 yards and 28 touchdowns with just two interceptions, and carried the ball 154 times for 564 yards, 12 scores and no fumbles. Those numbers are significantly less than Tebow’s record-setting season a year ago when he had more than 4,000 total yards with 55 touchdowns.

Questions about his ability to be successful in the NFL have intensified now that the junior is considering leaving college early.

Tebow, who has requested that the NFL review his draft prospects, has said he wants to play quarterback at the next level, but some have asked whether he has the arm strength to survive in the increasingly pass-happy league. The junior also received criticism for playing in the same offensive system run by coach Urban Meyer that produced Alex Smith, the top pick in 2005, who has achieved little since leaving college.

In addition, Tebow may be motivated to leave early now that Florida’s offensive coordinator, Dan Mullen, has been hired as the head coach at Mississippi State.

Offensive line coach Steve Addazio has been tapped as Mullen’s successor, though Mullen is with the Gators this week and will handle the play-calling during the game.

“Early on you have to get used to it,” Tebow said of the transition of coordinators. “But now we got things going.”