The 1998 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team was an American football team that represented the University of Notre Dame as an independent during the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their second year under head coach Bob Davie, the Irish compiled a 9–3 record, outscored opponents by a total of 300 to 213, and were ranked No. 22 in the final AP poll and UPI polls. They opened the season with a victory over No. 5 Michigan but lost the following week to unranked Michigan State. They then won eight straight games over unranked opponents before losing to USC. They ended the season with a loss to Georgia Tech in the Gator Bowl.
The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Jarious Jackson (1,740 passing yards), tailback Autry Denson (1,274 rushing yards, 90 points scored), wide receiver Malcolm Johnson (43 receptions for 692 yards), and linebacker Bobbie Howard (118 tackles).1998 Football Review, p. 48.
The team played its home games at Notre Dame Stadium in Notre Dame, Indiana.
Schedule
Rankings
Season summary With wins in their final five regular season games of 1997, the Irish started Davie's second season with confidence. Despite losing record-setting quarterback Ron Powlus, the Irish returned 14 starters, including tailback Autry Denson and three senior linebackers that were placed on the preliminary list for the Dick Butkus Award. Powlus was replaced by Jarious Jackson who had played sparingly in 1997 but had amassed almost 200 passing yards in the time. In Jackson's first start, against Michigan, he threw two touchdowns to lead the Irish, ranked 22nd, over the 5th ranked Wolverines. Denson added 162 yards and two touchdowns to give the Irish a 36–20 win. The Irish moved to tenth in the rankings, however didn't stay long, as Michigan State, who led by 39 points at halftime, beat the Irish for the second year in a row. Dropping back to 23rd in the nation, the Irish returned home to face Purdue. The Boilermakers handed the Irish their first loss in 1997 which dropped the Irish from the rankings, and the Irish looked for retribution in this game. With the Irish down two with less than two minutes remaining, Tony Driver, who was switched to cornerback in the offseason, intercepted a Drew Brees pass to set up the go-ahead field goal for the Irish. With the Boilermakers once again moving the ball, Driver had his second interception with less than a minute remaining to preserve the win for the Irish.
The Irish won all four of their October games, including a win over Stanford, a dominating win at Arizona State, a last minute win over Army, and a win over Baylor led by Denson's career high of 189 yards, to move back into the top-15 in the rankings. In the next game, the Boston College Eagles were poised for the upset of the Irish. Down 30–26, the Eagles had the ball on the Irish four-yard line with less than a minute remaining. The Irish defense, however, held the Eagles for four downs to preserve the win. The next week, led by Denson, who became the all-time leader in rushing yards at Notre Dame, the Irish shut-out Navy to increase their NCAA record winning streak over the Midshipmen to 35 games. Once again ranked tenth, the Irish faced LSU in their final home game. Avenging their loss in the , the Irish beat the Tigers on a late touchdown run. With a potential BCS berth on the line, and without Jackson, who was injured in the final play against LSU, the Irish traveled to face rivals USC in their final regular season game. Playing two backups at quarterback, including true freshman Arnaz Battle, the Irish were dominated by the tough Trojan defense that caused five turnovers. Though the Trojans, led by freshman quarterback Carson Palmer, couldn't produce much offense themselves, they only needed two scores to defeat the Irish 10–0. Missing out on a BCS bowl game, the Irish, who signed a deal early in the year that gave them a tie-in with the Big East Conference bowl games, accepted a bid to play Georgia Tech in the . Wearing their alternate green jerseys for the first time since the 1995 Fiesta Bowl, the Irish got behind early to the Yellow Jackets with two long touchdowns. Though closing the gap to a touchdown in the fourth quarter, the Irish couldn't move the ball on their last two drives and lost their fourth straight bowl game. They finished the season with a 9–3 record and dropped to 22nd in the national rankings.
After the season, seven players were taken in the 1999 National Football League (NFL) draft. Among them were Denson, who left with multiple Notre Dame rushing records, Malcolm Johnson, who left with a Notre Dame record of six consecutive games with a touchdown catch, and most of the offensive line starters. Also, offensive coordinator, Jim Colletto, was lured away to the NFL by Baltimore.
Game summaries Michigan
At Michigan State
Purdue
Stanford
At Arizona State
Army
Baylor
At Boston College
vs Navy
LSU
At USC
Vs. Georgia Tech—Gator Bowl
Roster
Statistics Passing Jarious Jackson - 104 of 188 (55.3%) for 1,740 yards, 13 touchdowns, 6 interceptions Arnaz Battle - 8 of 20 (40.0%) for 134 yards, 0 touchdowns and 2 interceptions
Rushing Autry Denson - 1,176 yards on 251 attempts, 4.7-yard average, 15 touchdowns Jarious Jackson - 441 yards on 113 attempts, 3.9-yard average, 3 touchdowns Jamie Spencer - 256 yards on 54 attempts, 4.7-yard average, 2 touchdowns Joey Goodspeed, 202 yards on 29 attempts, 7.0-yard average, 0 touchdowns
Receiving Malcolm Johnson - 43 receptions for 692 yards, 16.1-yard average, 6 touchdowns Bobby Brown - 13 receptions for 286 yards, 22.0-yard average, 1 touchdown Jabari Holloway - 15 receptions for 262 yards, 17.5-yard average, 2 touchdowns Raki Nelson - 11 receptions for 217 yards, 19.7-yard average, 2 touchdowns Joey Getherall - 13 receptions for 197 yards, 15.2-yard average, 1 touchdown
Scoring Autry Denson - 90 points scored, 15 touchdowns Jim Sanson - 64 points scored, 31 or 36 PAT, 11 of 15 field goals Malcolm Johnson - 36 points, 6 touchdowns
Tackles Bobbie Howard (LB) - 118 Jimmy Friday (LB) - 79 Deke Cooper (DB) - 78 Tony Driver (CB) - 60 Kory Minor (LB) - 60 A'Jani Sanders (S) - 58
References