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a hurry. The Ducks poured more water on their sinking ship, walking out of the Big House with a 39-7 pummeling that could and should have been much worse.

The hometown university of Track Town USA was out of the starting blocks faster than Prefontaine at Hayward, gaining the admiration of national pundits. Their heartbreaking defeat at Autzen against Cal, a Cameron Colvin fumble out the side of the end zone with the tying score inches away and time bleeding off the clock being the only difference in the contest, is the only blemish on an otherwise dominant record. Wins against early-season pretender Washington, national surprise Arizona State, and traditional giant USC have given Oregon great hope for their long-desired national championship... and Dixon has played so outstanding in Chip Kelly's spread offense that he now sits at or near the top of every Heisman projection...

The Ducks still have to go to Arizona and UCLA and host the Civil War against in-state rival Oregon State, so this season is certainly far from sealed. And the question of whether this season will yield Oregon's first trip to Pasadena in a dozen years and a shot at the school's first Rose Bowl victory in ninety - NINETY! - years, or whether a trip to New Orleans and a shot at the crystal hardware and a first national championship instead are on the horizon, remains to be answered. The final three contests, none of which are in the bag, will depend on the defense continuing to resist breaking as it bends and strains to repel the opposition from the end zone... and on the offense remaining healthy enough to maintain its swagger.

Dixon gave all Ducks fans a cardiac arrhythmia when he landed awkwardly on his left leg after being tackled by a Sun Devil defender in the fourth quarter last Saturday. It turned out to be little more than a tweaked knee; Dixon was quick to point out that he "didn't hear a pop". About this time last season, a Dixon tumble would have meant little more to Ducks fans than a breath of fresh air for an already-stale offense. Now, this team's and this university's and this city's national title hopes depend squarely on the sustained health of their field general. And Mr. Heisman could come calling for the best Ducks quarterback to come out of this air-attack factory, and Dennis could do it despite not having embarrassing Times Square billboards or a feverish promotional campaign. After all, there is no better promotion than showing worthiness on the field, and Dixon has not failed to provide that in droves this year...

Dennis adds to his legacy with every start and every outing. He is already acknowledged as the most accurate passer in Oregon history. His numbers are favorably comparable with every other dominant quarterback across the land and in any conference. His legend grows... and his forgettable past is fading farther and farther through the miasma of time into distant and hazy memory...

His senior season has proven a coming-out party for the rest of the national landscape to finally witness the myriad athletic gifts with which Dennis Dixon has been blessed. Oregon fans are whispering BCS aspirations in a way unparalleled even by the 2001 Joey Harrington-led Ducks version. That team, after all, had all the billboards and the hype, and certainly did deserve its moment in the sun. But, against all odds and expectations, Dixon has hoisted the current incarnation of Nike U onto his back and propelled it, by air and by land, with his arm and his legs, into the thick of one of the most erratic college football landscapes in years. Trips to New York and to either New Orleans or Pasadena await for the enigmatic number ten...

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