Dennis Dixon will have surgery on the left knee that buckled early in second-ranked Oregon's upset loss at Arizona Stadium. He likely loses a chance to win the Heisman Trophy.
The quarterback tore his anterior cruciate ligament during Oregon's Nov. 3 victory over Arizona State, according to coach Mike Bellotti, but he had rested it and felt as if he was ready to play Thursday night against the Wildcats.
Now Dixon will miss the rest of this season.
"He's a little bit despondent, because he obviously wanted to continue to play," Bellotti said.
The versatile Dixon was one of the front-runners for the Heisman after he put the Ducks in line for the national title. Oregon had started the season unranked and was picked to finish sixth in the Pac-10.
While drawing comparisons to Vince Young, Dixon completed 67.7 percent of his passes for 2,136 yards, 20 touchdowns and four interceptions. The senior from San Leandro, Calif., also ran for 583 yards and nine scores.
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Thursday night's 34-24 loss to the unranked Wildcats knocked the Ducks (8-2, 5-2) out of the national title picture. Oregon was ranked behind LSU and ahead of Oklahoma and undefeated Kansas.
Dixon's left knee crumbled as he tried to plant on an option carry with about 5 minutes to go in the first quarter against Arizona (5-6, 4-4).
His recovery after surgery will take at least six months, said team physician Bob Crist. The date for the surgery wasn't set.
Dixon was not available for comment.
He first injured his knee in Oregon's 35-23 victory at home over Arizona State on Nov. 3. While he knew the extent of the injury, he felt he could still play.
"He asked us on behalf of himself and his family to keep that quiet," Bellotti said in a conference call with reporters Friday afternoon.
It was Dixon's intention to delay the surgery until after the season, the coach said. He continued with the understanding that any further instability in the knee meant he would have to stop playing, the coach said.
"While he certainly had some personal goals at stake, anyone who is familiar with Dennis knows that any decisions he made were purely in the interest of his teammates and not motivated by any personal gains," Bellotti said.
He wore a brace Thursday night and said he had no pain or signs of trouble earlier in the game when he ran 38 yards for a touchdown on the Ducks' first possession.
