The 1998 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented the

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

in the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team's head football coach was John Cooper. The Buckeyes played their home games in Ohio Stadium. The team finished the season with a win–loss record of 11–1, and a

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

record of 7–1. They were co-champions of the Big Ten Conference with the

Wisconsin Badgers The Wisconsin Badgers are the athletic teams representing the University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin). They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level ( Football Bowl Subdivis ...

and the Michigan Wolverines and played in one of the premiere Bowl Championship Series bowl games, the 1999 Sugar Bowl. Led by senior quarterback

Joe Germaine Joseph Berton Germaine (born November 16, 1975) is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the fourth round of the 1999 NFL Draft after playing college football at Ohio State. Germaine earned a Super Bow ...

, the Buckeyes were the preseason number one team and remained top-ranked throughout the majority of the season. The Buckeyes only loss came late in the season to the

Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the school colors are green and wh ...

. The team blew a 15-point lead late in the game to fall 28–24. Because of the late loss, Ohio State was kept out of the National Championship Game, the 1999 Fiesta Bowl. Their regular season "miss" of not playing fellow tri-champion Wisconsin also cost the Buckeyes a trip to the 1999 Rose Bowl because Ohio State was the last to play in the Rose Bowl in 1997, Wisconsin last played in 1994. The Buckeyes beat Texas A&M in the Sugar Bowl to finish second in both polls behind the

Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Collegi ...

after their victory over

Florida State Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...

in the

Fiesta Bowl The Fiesta Bowl is an American college football bowl game played annually in the Phoenix metropolitan area. From its beginning in 1971 until 2006, the game was hosted at the Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Since 2007, the game has been pla ...

Schedule

Game summaries

West Virginia

Toledo

Missouri

Penn State

Illinois

Minnesota

Northwestern

Indiana

Michigan State

Iowa

Michigan

Ohio State secured a share of its 28th

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

title as the fans stormed the field with less than 30 seconds to play.

completed 19-of-24 passes for 330 yards, his seventh career 300-yard game, and his favorite target was

David Boston David Byron Boston (born August 19, 1978) is an American former Professional football (gridiron), professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Arizona Cardinals eighth overall ...

, who finished with 10 receptions for 217 yards, most ever by a Michigan opponent. Boston also broke his own single-season reception mark and moved past

Cris Carter Graduel Christopher Darin Carter (born November 25, 1965) is an American former football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Philadelphia Eagles (1987–1989), the Minnesota Vikings (1990–2001) and the Mia ...

on the school's all-time yardage list.

Texas A&M

Roster

Coaching staff

* John Cooper - Head Coach - 11th year * Bill Conley - Tight Ends, Recruiting Coordinator (12th year) *

Jim Heacock Jim Heacock (born June 23, 1948) is a former American football coach. He served as the head football coach at Illinois State University from 1988 to 1995, compiling a record of 37–49–2. In 1996, he became an assistant coach at Ohio State Un ...

- Defensive Tackles (3rd year) * Mike Jacobs - Offensive Coordinator, Offensive Line (4th year) *

Fred Pagac Frederick Pagac (born April 26, 1952) is a former American football tight end. He was signed by the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent in 1974. He played college football at Ohio State. Pagac also played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers an ...

- Defensive Coordinator, Linebackers (17th year) * Tim Salem - Quarterbacks (2nd year) * Shawn Simms - Defensive Ends (2nd year) * Tim Spencer - Running Backs (5th year) * Chuck Strobart - Wide Receivers (4th year) * Jon Tenuta - Defensive Backs (3rd year)

Depth chart

Q1986 Ohio State Football Media Guide

Rankings

1999 NFL draftees

References

{{Big Ten Conference football champions

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

Ohio State Buckeyes football seasons Big Ten Conference football champion seasons Sugar Bowl champion seasons

Ohio State Buckeyes football The Ohio State Buckeyes football team competes as part of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, representing Ohio State University in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference. Ohio State has played their home games at Ohio Stadium i ...