CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. -- Former Louisville basketball player Marques Maybin was paralyzed from the waist down in a motorcycle accident in his hometown, his father told a newspaper.

Maybin, who turns 25 on Sept. 17, was riding a motorcycle when he collided with the back of a pickup truck at an intersection on Aug. 5, said Clarksville police spokesman Geno Grubbs.

Maybin had an "incapacitating injury,'' meaning he was unable to leave the scene on his own, Grubbs said.

Maybin was airlifted to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, where he was undergoing surgery on Monday. A spokeswoman said the family asked that no information about his injuries be released.

But Michael Maybin told The Courier-Journal in Louisville that his son is paralyzed.

"Marques is kind of messed up in his head right now,'' Michael Maybin said. "He's such a wonderful kid. He's always smiling when people come in to see him. But at night, when it's just us, it all caves in on him.''

Maybin's father said the purpose of Monday's surgery was to fuse vertebrae around his son's spine to prevent further paralysis.

The 6-foot-3 Maybin was a guard at Louisville from 1997-2001, the last four seasons of Hall of Fame coach Denny Crum's tenure. Maybin finished with 1,624 points, 12th on the school's career scoring list.

He played professionally in Lebanon and France after leaving school. He was living in Clarksville at the time of the accident, Grubbs said.

Maybin's father said his son did not have a job and does not have health insurance. Louisville sports information director Kenny Klein said the school will accept donations to place in a fund to help Maybin.