Healthy Choice

By Ivan Maisel, ESPN.com

Oregon quarterback Dennis Dixon's season has been over for nearly 72 hours, the result of his left knee sending him a message that went something like this: "Why do I have to repeat myself? I told you two weeks ago I was done."

John Miller/AP Photo

Dennis Dixon was quite possibly running to a Heisman Trophy.

Florida quarterback Tim Tebow? West Virginia quarterback Pat White? Put the names of all the top players who still are ambulatory into the hat. Now, reach in and pick out a name to write in for second place.

The first name on the ballot should be Dennis Dixon.

The fifth-year senior had an outstanding season, as have Tebow, White and YOUR CANDIDATE'S NAME HERE. We can have the discussion regarding how sick Tebow's statistics are next week, when his season is over.

Dixon not only had a great season, he led his team into contention for the national championship. To measure his value, take a look at how the Ducks played with him for nine-plus games and how they played without him for the final three quarters Thursday night. To measure his heart, take a look at how well he played with a torn ACL against Arizona.

Dixon didn't want it known that he had torn the ACL on Nov. 3 against Arizona State. When it didn't swell, he decided to try to keep playing. For three drives, he played as well, and with as much sizzle, as he had all season.

He will miss the Ducks' last two regular-season games, and he might drift out of voters' minds by the first week in December, when the ballots are due. I won't vote until after the championship games, because I don't have to.

Tebow and Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel each have at least one more game. White has two. Maybe one of them will make a bigger impression on me than Dixon did. That will be hard to do.

Waiting Is The Hardest Part

By Heather Dinich, ESPN.com

ANN ARBOR, Mich., -- Ohio State's regular season has ended, but the waiting has just begun.

By beating Michigan on Saturday in The Big House for the Big Ten title, the No. 5 Buckeyes (11-1, 7-1) hung onto their hopes of playing for the national title.

Now, it's up to everyone else to lose -- which, considering how the rest of the season has gone, is quite possible. (See Exhibit No. 2: Oregon, USC, California, South Florida and Boston College).

Otherwise, the Buckeyes are headed to the Rose Bowl.

"We're going to Pasadena unless it shakes out the other way," said Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, who improved his record against the Wolverines to 6-1 with the 14-3 win. "Right now, we're going to worry about Thanksgiving, final exams, and when we get done with both of those, we'll have a pretty good idea on Dec. 2 where we're going."

At the very least, Ohio State won't drop lower than No. 4 in the BCS standings. Here's why:

No. 2 Oregon lost to Arizona and lost Heisman-hopeful quarterback Dennis Dixon to an injury in the process. Kansas and Missouri will play Saturday, so lop out the loser of that matchup.

LSU still has to host Arkansas and then play in the SEC title game, and West Virginia still has UConn and Pitt on its schedule.

Worst-case scenario?

Ohio State plays in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1997. The Buckeyes have been to Pasadena only once since 1985, but only because they had to bypass it twice in the past six years to play in the BCS National Championship Game.

The next few weeks will determine if they have that choice this year.

There's Something About Matt

By Chris Low, ESPN.com

CLEMSON, S.C. -- Matt Ryan just has that aura about him. Unfortunately for Clemson, so do the Tigers.

Give Ryan a few minutes on the clock, a field to drive and the game on the line -- and there's nobody better in college football.

Rex Brown/Getty Images

Matt Ryan conjured up some last-minute magic for Boston College.

Ryan broke the Tigers' hearts Saturday night at Death Valley by doing what he does best. The Boston College quarterback's 43-yard touchdown pass to Rich Gunnell with 1:46 to play sent the Tigers packing 20-17 and propelled the Eagles into the ACC championship game on Dec. 1 in Jacksonville, Fla.

Was it enough to propel Ryan back to the top of the Heisman Trophy race?

Everybody who was part of it -- on either side -- sure thinks so.

"If you give him one down and take even one play off, he can hurt you," lamented Bowden, whose Tigers will have to play the "what if" game for the third straight year after sniffing the ACC championship game but not doing enough to get there.

"You can sack him, but he's going to bounce back. He's tall and scrambles. We were able to get good pressure, though. He's a great player. We were beaten by the best quarterback in the nation."

Click here to read the rest of this story.

Technical Improvement

By Tim Griffin, Special To ESPN.com

LUBBOCK, Texas -- Even after several recent struggling performances, Texas Tech cornerback Chris Parker never doubted his defensive teammates.

The Red Raiders' defense bounced back from a horrendous performance the previous week at Texas to provide the impetus for Tech's wild 34-27 victory over Oklahoma on Saturday.

LM Otero/AP Photo

Texas Tech's defense improved vastly Saturday over the previous week's performance.

"We just came out with the mind-set that we were going to stop them on defense," Parker said. "We did just that and gave our offense a chance to do what they did."

The big effort was nothing like last week, when the Red Raiders dropped a 59-43 loss at Texas. The Longhorns were forced to punt only once as they gashed the Red Raiders for 283 rushing yards and 551 total yards and held onto the ball for more than 40 minutes.

That defensive debacle was nothing but a bad memory Saturday as the Red Raiders rebounded to shackle OU for three quarters before a late Sooners charge made the game close.

"They worked hard," interim defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill said. "You've got a group of guys who are growing together. I was proud of the effort this week. It was a tough loss down in Austin, and they knew after the game that they could play better."

The Red Raiders twice turned away OU inside their own 15 late in the fourth quarter, deflecting fourth-down passes in the end zone to kill scoring drives.

Tech did not allow OU to score an offensive touchdown in the first 52 minutes of the game, knocking out starting quarterback Sam Bradford with a concussion in the process. The Red Raiders allowed 112 yards in the first half against a unit that was averaging 45 points per game.

"There were huge contributions by our defense, huge contributions by special teams and huge contributions by the offense," coach Mike Leach said. "I think we won the game together. And I thought today that the Tech defense was the biggest factor of the game."

Twice As Nice

By Mark Schlabach, ESPN.com

"Not to sound corny, but I was thinking about my girl back home," Kelly said. "I was just looking for more happy thoughts, and that's what got me through."

Cathleen Allison/AP Photo

Hawaii's win kept the Warriors alive for a BCS bid.

Actually, Kelly had to put two field goals through the uprights against Nevada at Mackay Stadium. With the Wolf Pack leading 26-25 with 15.8 seconds to go, Kelly's awkard line drive barely cleared the uprights to give Hawaii a 28-26 lead with 11.7 seconds to go.

But Nevada coach Chris Ault had called a timeout just before Kelly's foot hit the ball, so the Hawaii kicker had to do it all over again.

"I knew [Ault] was going to call timeout," Hawaii coach June Jones said. "When I saw Dan kick at Louisana Tech and had to make a 49-yard field goal [to force overtime], I knew he was a gamer. When he's under pressure, he seems to kick better."

Kelly's second game-winning attempt against Nevada was good, too. In fact, it might have cleared the uprights from 55 yards. Hawaii improved to 10-0 for the first time since 1925, matching the best start in school history.

The Warriors won without star quarterback Colt Brennan, who attempted only two passes in the game after suffering a concussion against Fresno State a week earlier.

"It's pressure situations, and they don't bother me," Kelly said. "As soon as the ball left my foot, I knew it was good and started celebrating with my teammates."

A New Feeling

By Adam Rittenberg, Special To ESPN.com

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Two tower cranes flanked the west edge of Memorial Stadium, each dangling a flag: stars and stripes on one, orange and blue on the other.

Below the macro machines, the west balcony had been stripped of seats and spectators. Steel slabs were scattered about, and concrete partitions rose from the rear of the remodeled deck.

Illinois' $116 million facelift of its 84-year-old stadium remains a work in progress, but the rebuilding process on the field is complete.

The Fighting Illini are a finished product, as they proved again Saturday, cruising to a 41-22 win against overmatched Northwestern. A week after making a statement to the nation with a road upset of top-ranked Ohio State, the conquering heroes gave their fans one final blowout bash in 2007.

Illinois' next game will come in 2008, but unlike in the past five seasons, the wait will last only until January. As representatives from the Capital One Bowl and the Outback Bowl grinned on the sideline, the Illini likely secured at least a New Year's Day berth with their ninth win.

"These guys are going to have to learn that New Year's Eve, they don't get to go out," third-year coach Ron Zook said. "But that's a good thing."

Illinois students began chanting, "BCS! BCS!" with 2:43 left and pleaded, "One more year!" as Rashard Mendenhall (27 carries, 124 yards, two touchdowns), a junior, trotted off the field. Realizing both their appeals are unlikely to be granted, the students screamed, "Juuuuuuuuuice!" as the future of the team, quarterback Juice Williams, waved to them.

The loudest cheer was reserved for senior linebacker Jeremy Leman, who celebrated only eight wins in his first four seasons.

"The stuff we've been through has been very tough," Leman said. "Walking off that field 9-3 was all worth it."