This was supposed to be the “Year of the Running Back” in college football.

Arkansas’ Darren McFadden was to lead a highly contested race for the Heisman, with West Virginia’s Steve Slaton, Rutgers’ Ray Rice and Michigan’s Mike Hart in hot pursuit. Boise State’s Ian Johnson was the dark horse candidate, and everything was all but set: for only the second time in the last eight years, a running back would win college football’s highest honor.

But almost overnight, quarterbacks started overshadowing their backfield counterparts. Hawaii’s Colt Brennan — one of the only quarterbacks given a shot to win the Heisman at the beginning of the year — along with Boston College’s Matt Ryan, West Virginia’s Pat White, Florida’s Tim Tebow and Kentucky’s Andre Woodson, began to receive more recognition than McFadden & Co.

The reasons are fairly obvious: BC, Kentucky and Hawaii stayed undefeated while the running backs’ schools all lost early in the season. In six of the past seven years, the Heisman has gone to a player on a BCS Championship Game-bound team. Additionally, Johnson’s and Hart’s candidacies have been hurt by their respective injuries, Slaton has regressed statistically, and Rice and McFadden, despite having impressive rushing totals, play on mediocre teams.

The “Year of the Running Back” has become just another “Year of the Quarterback.” But unlike many previous seasons, the contest is far from over. And while little separates these specialists from one another, Dennis Dixon, Oregon’s senior quarterback, has emerged from the pack to become the frontrunner in the race, a position he probably won’t relinquish.

Dixon, a former baseball player in the Atlanta Braves farm system, is in his second year as the Ducks’ full-time starter. He’s smart (Pac-10 All-Academic second-team) and well-built (6-foot-4, 205 pounds). He has a remarkably strong arm and is very fast (4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash) for an athlete his size. Considered a bit immature earlier in his collegiate career, his leadership skills are now a strong suit.

But Dixon, much like his team, was an afterthought until his performance against Michigan in Week 2. Oregon received few preseason accolades and was picked to finish in the middle of the Pac-10. But, at the Big House against a favored Michigan team, Dixon threw for 292 yards and three scores and rushed for 76 yards and a touchdown as the Ducks pummeled the Wolverines, 39-7.

Two weeks later at Stanford, Dixon was nearly unstoppable: He threw for 374 yards and four touchdowns at a 75.7 percent completion rate, and, though the stats don’t indicate it, he was able to scramble out of the pocket to avoid the Cardinal pass rush and make key throws on the run. His game management was outstanding, and his confidence, even when the Ducks were losing in the third quarter, was evident on every snap.

In subsequent weeks, his play has yet to let up. A week and a half ago, Dixon threw for four touchdowns in a nationally televised game against then-undefeated and No. 6 Arizona State. On the year, he has more than 2,000 yards passing and 500 yards rushing. He’s thrown 20 touchdowns and rushed for eight more and has only been intercepted three times.

In the process, he has led Oregon from out of nowhere to second in the BCS standings. The Ducks have a good chance to win out — the most competitive part of their schedule is behind them, and in the coming weeks, they will face beatable opponents in Arizona, UCLA and Oregon State. If they continue to win, the Ducks will likely be playing in the BCS Championship Game in January.

Over the past two weeks, Dixon has established himself as the Heisman favorite. Ryan’s and Woodson’s hopes faded away when their teams began losing; Brennan, despite playing in a pass-heavy offense, has taken a step back statistically from last year. Tebow, McFadden and White are making late pushes for the trophy after early season setbacks, but their candidacies might be getting off the ground a little too late.

Only Dixon has demonstrated the consistency needed to win the award and, come Dec. 9, he will be in New York, hoisting the Heisman Trophy.