|
 NCAA Scouting – Player Profile:
Dennis Dixon, QB
by Paul Hopkins
16/3/2008
Few players had quite the up and down 2007 season that Dennis Dixon of the Oregon Ducks had. The season started with a bang as, in week 2 the Ducks stomped the Michigan Wolverines 39-7 in the Big House in front of a national television audience. From here the Oregon bandwagon, highlighted by Dixon’s legitimate candidacy for the Heisman trophy ran and ran. Despite a last gasp defeat to California, in early November the Ducks were ranked No.2 in the country and were in line for a berth in the national championship. At this time, Dixon was very tentatively inching his way up many people’s draft projections, and at one point was even talked about as being a second round prospect.
 Then it all changed. Dennis suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in the fourth quarter on a running play vs. Arizona State on the 3rd November. Despite the injury, he came out and played the week after against Arizona. In the first quarter, without pressure or without being tackled he went down clutching his knee. His season was over, and once he had undergone surgery, Dixon faced six months on the sidelines. The NFL prospects for Dixon looked bleak.
It is testament to Dixon that, at this time he retained his focus on the team, despite the injury and what it personally meant to him and his prospects. He featured on the sidelines during the Sun Bowl, assisting and encouraging his replacements at quarterback.
Dixon ended his career in Oregon with 25 wins, with 5,129 passing yards, 38 touchdowns and 21 interceptions. As a clear dual threat quarterback he ran for an average of 4.7 on 258 carries (1,208 yards), scoring 12 touchdowns in the process.
Dixon was invited to the combine, which suggests that franchises were interested in him, but obviously needed to ascertain his status following major surgery on his knee. At this time, his draft status is certainly up in the air. Most likely is that a team will take a chance on him in lower rounds (six onwards) and see what they get from him when he comes in. One thing is certain however. This dual threat athlete does, as he admitted, have a lot of options.
Dixon is already property of the Atlanta Braves baseball organisation. In an interview conducted after he suffered injury, the QB was asked about whether he would play baseball or football and responded, “I’ll talk with my family at the end of the season,” Dixon said. “I’ll see what my (NFL draft) forecast is and how I do at the various evaluations and talk to my family. It will be a thorough decision process. …The sky is the limit.
What we like about Dixon
 Physically, Dixon has everything that is needed to be a success. Unlike previous quarterbacks of his ilk, he has a great arm to go alongside his running ability. Dixon also is a natural leader who understands his role in the team game. As already mentioned, following his injury he returned to mentor and assist his replacements at QB in his final weeks at Oregon.
As a passer he is quick at making his reads, and is not prone to make rash decisions and consequently mistakes. He proved in 2007 that previous questions over accuracy were a thing of the past, as his throwing action looked smoother than previously. As evident by the 2007 Michigan and Stanford games, he now knows how to lay the ball out for the receiver to run into without having to make adjustments in the route. He can feel pressure and with his ability to run, can get out of situations. However, he proved in 2007 that he is patient enough to wait for receivers to get open before taking off downfield himself.
Question marks over Dixon
Clearly the biggest question mark over Dixon has to be how he has recovered from injury. It was a serious knee injury, particularly for a quarterback with the ability to run and teams will scrutinise his recovery closely.
The Ducks mostly used the shotgun formation, so Dixon will need to get more familiar with taking snaps under centre. His speed may assist his development in this area, but it is a question mark over him. Also, at 6 foot 4 inches, Dixon has the height to play QB in the NFL, but he could do with adding another 10-15 pounds of mass to be able to cope with the heightened physical rigours of the NFL.
As with most quarterbacks of this type, the up-side is obvious and potentially limitless. However, integrating them into a pro offence is much harder to achieve. Taken with this and Dixon’s injury status, it will be interesting to see what he ends up choosing to do and if it is in football, how he develops.
Highlight of his college career
 Anyone who saw it will remember his virtuoso performance in the Big House in week two of the 2007 season, as the Ducks dismantled Michigan 39-7. Dixon accounted for 368 yards of offence and 4 touchdowns. The highlight of his performance was a fake statue of liberty play that saw him canter into the end zone for the touchdown.
Other snippets of info
-
Spent the summer of 2007 playing baseball in the Atlanta Braves’ organization after the outfielder was drafted in the fifth round of this year’s Amateur Baseball Draft.
-
Dixon was named one of three finalists for both the Maxwell Award and the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award in 2007.
-
Similar players to Dixon, both in the NFL’s past and present are Randall Cunningham and Warren Moon, Michael Vick and Vince Young.
-
In terms of where Dixon would be a good fit, because of the need for his development, he has the ability to play anywhere where coaches would be able to work with, and be patient in his development.
Video Footage:
|
