# 1998 Ohio State Buckeyes football team

The 1998 Ohio State Buckeyes football team represented the Ohio State University 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 record of 7–1. They were co-champions of the Big Ten Conference with the Wisconsin Badgers 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, 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 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 after their victory over Florida State in the Fiesta Bowl.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 5 | 8:00 p.m. | at No. 11 West Virginia* | No. 1 | Mountaineer FieldMorgantown, WV | CBS | W 34–17 | 68,409 |
| September 12 | 12:30 p.m. | Toledo* | No. 1 | Ohio StadiumColumbus, OH | ESPN | W 49–0 | 93,149 |
| September 19 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 21 Missouri* | No. 1 | Ohio StadiumColumbus, OH | ABC | W 35–14 | 93,269 |
| October 3 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 7 Penn State | No. 1 | Ohio StadiumColumbus, OH (rivalry, College GameDay) | ABC | W 28–9 | 93,479 |
| October 10 | 12:00 p.m. | at Illinois | No. 1 | Memorial StadiumChampaign, IL (Illibuck Trophy) | ESPN Plus | W 41–0 | 46,390 |
| October 17 | 12:00 p.m. | Minnesota | No. 1 | Ohio StadiumColumbus, OH | ESPN Plus | W 45–15 | 93,138 |
| October 24 | 12:00 p.m. | at Northwestern | No. 1 | Ryan FieldEvanston, IL | ESPN2 | W 36–10 | 47,130 |
| October 31 | 3:30 p.m. | at Indiana | No. 1 | Memorial StadiumBloomington, IN | ABC | W 38–7 | 52,049 |
| November 7 | 3:30 p.m. | Michigan State | No. 1 | Ohio StadiumColumbus, OH | ABC | L 24–28 | 93,595 |
| November 14 | 3:30 p.m. | at Iowa | No. 7 | Kinnick StadiumIowa City, IA | ABC | W 45–14 | 69,473 |
| November 21 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 11 Michigan | No. 7 | Ohio StadiumColumbus, OH (rivalry) | ABC | W 31–16 | 94,339 |
| January 1, 1999 | 8:30 p.m. | vs. No. 8 Texas A&M* | No. 3 | Louisiana SuperdomeNew Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl) | ABC | W 24–14 | 76,503 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern timeSource: ||||||||

## Game summaries
### West Virginia

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Ohio State | 10 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 34 |
| West Virginia | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
at Mountaineer Field, Morgantown, West Virginia
* Date: September 5, 1998
* Game time: 8:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 76°, Clear & Mild, wind 5 S
* Game attendance: 68,409
* Referee: Dick Honig

### Toledo

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Toledo | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ohio State | 21 | 21 | 7 | 0 | 49 |
at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
* Date: September 12, 1998
* Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 85°, Clear & Sunny, wind 7 W
* Game attendance: 93,149
* Referee: D. Witvoet

### Missouri

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Missouri | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Ohio State | 7 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 35 |
at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
* Date: September 19, 1998
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 80°, Sunny, wind 5 S
* Game attendance: 93,269
* Referee: J. Kemerling

### Penn State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Penn State | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 9 |
| Ohio State | 0 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 28 |
at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
* Date: October 3, 1998
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 60°, Overcast Rain, wind 5-10 SSW
* Game attendance: 93,479
* Referee: Dick Honig
Game information :
First quarter
No scoring
Second quarter
PSU - Forney 42-yard field goal
OSU - Rudzinski recovered fumble in end zone (Stultz kick)
OSU - Wiley 20-yard pass from Germaine (Stultz kick)
Third quarter
OSU - Cooper recovered blocked punt in end zone (Stultz kick)
PSU - Cerimele 1-yard run (two-point conversion failed)
OSU - Montgomery 1-yard run (Stultz kick)
Fourth quarter
No scoring
Source: USA Today :

### Illinois

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Ohio State | 10 | 14 | 0 | 17 | 41 |
| Illinois | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Memorial Stadium, Champaign, Illinois
* Date: October 10, 1998
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 64°, Sunny, wind 7 SW
* Game attendance: 46,390
* Referee: J. Kemerling
Game information :
First quarter
OSU - Stultz 40 yard field goal
OSU - Lumpkin 1 yard pass from Germaine (Stultz kick)
Second quarter
OSU - Boston 30 yard pass from Germaine (Stultz kick)
OSU - Germany 37 yard pass from Germaine (Stultz kick)
Third quarter
No scoring
Fourth quarter
OSU - Stultz 46 yard field goal
OSU - Diggs 47 yard fumble return (Stultz kick)
OSU - Wells 2 yard run (Stultz kick)
OSU - Joe Germaine 17/28, 307 Yds (third straight 300+ yard passing game – school record) :

### Minnesota

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Minnesota | 3 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 15 |
| Ohio State | 14 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 45 |
at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
* Date: October 17, 1998
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 70°, Sunny, wind 5-10 S
* Game attendance: 93,183
* Referee: D. Witvoet

### Northwestern

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Ohio State | 17 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 36 |
| Northwestern | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
at Ryan Field, Evanston, Illinois
* Date: October 24, 1998
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 52°, Sunny, wind 9 SW
* Game attendance: 47,130
* Referee: J. Teitz

### Indiana

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Ohio State | 14 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 38 |
| Indiana | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, Indiana
* Date: October 31, 1998
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 63°, Partly Cloudy, wind 10-15 NW
* Game attendance: 52,049
* Referee: J. Kemerling

### Michigan State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Michigan State | 3 | 6 | 9 | 10 | 28 |
| Ohio State | 17 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
* Date: November 7, 1998
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 48°, Clear, wind 5-10 W
* Game attendance: 93,595
* Referee: D. Witvoet

### Iowa

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Ohio State | 14 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 45 |
| Iowa | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
at Kinnick Stadium, Iowa City, Iowa
* Date: November 14, 1998
* Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: 61°, Clear wind 17-20 NW
* Game attendance: 69,473

### Michigan

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Michigan | 0 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 16 |
| Ohio State | 14 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 31 |
at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
* Date: November 21, 1998
* Game time: 12:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Cloudy, 38 °F (3 °C)
* Game attendance: 94,339
* Referee: Bill LeMonnier
* TV: ABC
Game information :
First quarter
OSU – Michael Wiley 53-yard run (Dan Stultz kick), 12:20. Ohio St 7–0. Drive: 4 plays, 69 yards, 1:18.
OSU – Dee Miller 16-yard pass from Joe Germaine (Dan Stultz kick), 9:44. Ohio St 14–0. Drive: 3 plays, 16 yards, 1:33.
Second quarter
MICH – Jay Feely 27-yard field goal, 14:33. Ohio St 14–3. Drive: 4 plays, 5 yards, 0:59.
OSU – David Boston 30-yard pass from Joe Germaine (Dan Stultz kick), 4:03. Ohio St 21–3. Drive: 2 plays, 35 yards, 0:44.
MICH – Tai Streets 3-yard pass from Tom Brady (Jay Feely kick), 0:25. Ohio St 21–10. Drive: 9 plays, 80 yards, 2:38.
Third quarter
OSU - David Boston 43-yard pass from Joe Germaine (Dan Stultz kick), 9:51. Ohio St 28–10. Drive: 4 plays, 54 yards, 1:14.
MICH – Jay Feely 34-yard field goal, 4:47. Ohio St 28–13. Drive: 9 plays, 27 yards, 4:50.
OSU – Dan Stultz 39-yard field goal, 1:36. Ohio St 31–13. Drive: 6 plays, 58 yards, 3:06.
Fourth quarter
MICH – Jay Feely 30-yard field goal, 14:47. Ohio St 31–16. Drive: 10 plays, 68 yards, 1:41.
Top passers
MICH – Tom Brady – 31/56, 375 yards, TD, 2 INT
OSU – Joe Germaine – 16/28, 330 yards, 3 TD
Top rushers
MICH – Clarence Williams – 11 rushes, 13 yards
OSU – Michael Wiley – 12 rushes, 120 yards, TD
Top receivers
MICH – Tai Streets – 9 receptions, 118 yards, TD
OSU – David Boston – 10 receptions, 217 yards, 2 TD :
Ohio State secured a share of its 28th Big Ten title as the fans stormed the field with less than 30 seconds to play. Joe Germaine completed 19-of-24 passes for 330 yards, his seventh career 300-yard game, and his favorite target was David Boston, 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 on the school's all-time yardage list.

### Texas A&M

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Texas A&M | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Ohio State | 21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
* Date: January 1, 1999
* Game time: 7:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: None (indoors)
* Game attendance: 76,502
* Referee: A. Ford

## Coaching staff

* John Cooper - Head Coach - 11th year
* Bill Conley – Tight ends, Recruiting Coordinator (12th year)
* Jim Heacock - Defensive tackles (3rd year)
* Mike Jacobs – Offensive coordinator, Offensive Line (4th year)
* Fred Pagac – 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

Defense :
* FS
* 1 Gary Berry
* 17 Percy King
| WLB | MLB | SLB |
| 35 Jerry Rudzinski | 45 Andy Katzenmoyer | 32 Na'il Diggs |
| 30 Jason Ott | 44 Chris Kirk | 58 Courtland Bullard |
* SS
* 13 Damon Moore
* 20 Central McClellion
* CB
* 11 Antoine Winfield
* 3 David Mitchell
| DE | DT | DT | DE |
| 60 Brent Johnson | 73 Joe Brown | 79 Ryan Pickett | 94 Rodney Bailey |
| 52 James Cotton | 98 Mike Collins | 90 Clinton Wayne | 48 Matt LaVrar |
* CB
* 19 Ahmed Plummer
* 2 Rolland Steele
Offense :
* SE
* 9 David Boston
* 80 Reggie Germany
| LT | LG | C | RG | RT |
| 77 Tyson Walter | 56 Rob Murphy | 63 Kurt Murphy | 64 Ben Gilbert | 67 Brooks Burris |
| 69 Jim Massey | 65 Mike Gurr | 78 Drew Elford | 55 Tam Hopkins | 75 Henry Fleming |
* TE
* 85 John Lumpkin
* 84 Steve Wisniewski
* FL
* 15 Dee Miller
* 4 Ken-Yon Rambo
* QB
* 7 Joe Germaine
* 16 Mark Garcia
* Key reserves
* 8 Steve Bellisari (Fr) Special Teams/DB/QB
* FB
* 23 Matt Keller
* 36 Sean Penny
* Special teams
* PK 47 Dan Stultz
* P 41 Brent Bartholomew
* RB
* 5 Michael Wiley
* 33 Joe Montgomery
Q

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| AP | 1 (30) | 1 (39) | 1 (57) | 1 (64) | 1 (58) | 1 (66) | 1 (64) | 1 (64) | 1 (64) | 1 (63) | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 |
| Coaches Poll | 1 (31) | 1 (38) | 1 (52) | 1 (53) | 1 (45) | 1 (54) | 1 (59) | 1 (58) | 1 (55) | 1 (54) | 7 | 6 | 5 (1) | 5 (1) | 3 (1) | 2 |
| BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 2 | 1 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | Not released |

## 1999 NFL draftees

| Player | Round | Pick | Position | NFL club |
| David Boston | 1 | 8 | Wide Receiver | Arizona Cardinals |
| Antoine Winfield | 1 | 23 | Defensive Back | Buffalo Bills |
| Andy Katzenmoyer | 1 | 28 | Linebacker | New England Patriots |
| Joe Montgomery | 2 | 49 | Running back | New York Giants |
| Joe Germaine | 4 | 101 | Quarterback | St. Louis Rams |
| Damon Moore | 4 | 128 | Defensive Back | Philadelphia Eagles |
| Brent Bartholomew | 6 | 192 | Punter | Miami Dolphins |
| Dee Miller | 6 | 196 | Wide Receiver | Green Bay Packers |
Source: