TUCSON, Ariz. – While trying to avoid oncoming defenders, Oregon quarterback Dennis Dixon fell to the ground untouched after his left knee buckled and he lay on the ground holding the knee and wincing in pain.
“My foot got planted in the ground and my knee went the other way,” Dixon said. “But I should be fine. I hope so.”
It was familiar sight to those who witnessed Dixon first injuring the knee against Arizona State on Nov. 3. Although Dixon’s injury wasn’t substantial, he said he could have come back into the game if needed. After Thursday’s game, Dixon said his knee felt similar to the injury he suffered against Arizona State. He believes he re-aggravated it and all he needs is some extended rehab.
Against Arizona State, the Ducks were able to come away with a win, except this time, Oregon didn’t have a substantial lead in the fourth quarter. The Ducks led 11-7 and Dixon couldn’t come back onto the field. Instead, he stood on the sideline for the majority of the remainder of the game and watched as the Ducks went down 34-24 in Tucson.
“I’ve got too much pride. I’ve worked so hard trying to play for this team,” Dixon said. “You’ve got to play your heart out because you never know when it’s going to be your last play.”
A reporter reminded Dixon that two years ago, former Oregon quarterback Kellen Clemens had his career end at Arizona as well. Dixon suffered a concussion in that same game. Clemens had uttered the same sentiment saying that seniors need to treat every play like it’s their last.
“It’s kind of ironic,” Dixon said. “It’s kind of deja vu here at Arizona. We don’t know what exactly it is, but this place hates us.”
The loss likely leaves the Ducks out of the national title picture and now they’ll have to compete for a possible Rose Bowl berth, not that the national title picture has Oregon coach Mike Bellotti concerned.
“I’m more concerned about our team because we have two very important games left,” Bellotti said. “We have to refocus for UCLA and Oregon State because we are still in contention for a Pac-10 title.”
Without Dixon, the Ducks turned to Brady Leaf, who completed his first pass before Oregon ran on seven consecutive plays on its following possession. On his third pass attempt, Leaf threw into the open arms of Arizona cornerback Antoine Cason, who ran the ball back 42 yards for a touchdown and gave the Wildcats a 17-11 lead.
It only got worse from there. Leaf would end up injuring his ankle on a hit, which limited his ability to avoid the constant Arizona pass rush. Leaf finished the game 22-of-46 passing with two interceptions.
“Kind of like having a wounded animal back there,” offensive coordinator Chip Kelly said about Leaf trying to elude the Wildcats’ defenders. “You have one quarterback down with a bad knee and Brady hurts his ankle, that’s probably a good strategy (to blitz) on their part. He wasn’t as mobile as he could’ve been and that limited us to what we could do.”
After Oregon was forced into a three-and-out situation for the third consecutive drive in the second quarter, punter Josh Syria punted the ball 46 yards to Cason, who caught it and found the hole in Oregon’s punt coverage to score and give the Wildcats a 31-11 lead after the PAT.
Oregon’s defense would fare better in the second half, holding Arizona scoreless for nine consecutive possessions, but the offense only managed a field goal through the third quarter.
“Our defense took the challenge and did a tremendous job in the second half,” Bellotti said. “We didn’t play well offensively. All the yards we gained didn’t transfer to many points for us.”
To help the offense, the Ducks ran a fake punt in the fourth quarter, after yet another stalled drive, but linebacker Kwame Agyeman fumbled the ball after a 40 yard gain to Arizona’s 21-yard line. The ball returned to Arizona for the Ducks’ third turnover of the game, and ninth in the last two games against the Wildcats.
While the passing game sputtered, the offense continued to give the ball to running back Jonathan Stewart for positive yardage. In the fourth quarter, it paid off when the ball was handed to Stewart and Oregon scored its first touchdown since the opening possession. However, the score was negated right away by a holding call. Stewart would leave the game injured, but sophomore Andre Crenshaw punched in a 2-yard touchdown late to make it a seven-point ballgame, 31-24. Stewart finished the game with 28 carries for 131 yards and four receptions for 18.
Oregon’s defense would surrender a field goal to Arizona in the fourth quarter, giving the Wildcats a two-score lead in the final minutes. The Ducks tried to throw down the field, but were unable to convert anything.
Dixon’s Heisman campaign appears to be over as well, although that’s about the last thing on his mind.
“I’m not worried about that at all,” Dixon said. “I wasn’t even worried about that from the beginning.”
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