1998 LSU Tigers football team

The 1998 LSU Tigers football team was an American football team that represented Louisiana State University (LSU) as a member of the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference during the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their fourth year under head coach Gerry DiNardo, the team compiled a 4–7 record, with a conference record of 2–6, and finished fifth in the Western Division.[1]

1998 LSU Tigers football
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionWestern Division
Record4–7 (2–6 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorMorris Watts (4th season)
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorLou Tepper (1st season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumTiger Stadium
(Capacity: 79,940)
Seasons
← 1997
1999 →
1998 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
Eastern Division
No. 1 Tennessee x$#   8 0     13 0  
No. 5 Florida  %   7 1     10 2  
No. 14 Georgia   6 2     9 3  
Kentucky   4 4     7 5  
Vanderbilt   1 7     2 9  
South Carolina   0 8     1 10  
Western Division
Mississippi State xy   6 2     8 5  
No. 16 Arkansas x   6 2     9 3  
Alabama   4 4     7 5  
Ole Miss   3 5     7 5  
LSU   2 6     4 7  
Auburn   1 7     3 8  
Championship: Tennessee 24, Mississippi State 14
  • # – BCS National Champion
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

In the beginning of the season, expectations were high as LSU had tied for the SEC West title but lost tiebreakers the previous two seasons. After a 3–0 start and No. 6 national ranking, the Tigers' season stunningly fell apart. They finished 1–7 in the last eight games of the season with many close losses, and finished 4–7, their seventh losing season out of the last ten. The loss at Ole Miss was LSU's first overtime game.

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 127:00 p.m.Arkansas State*No. 7W 42–680,051[2]
September 194:00 p.m.at AuburnNo. 7ESPNW 31–1985,214[3]
September 267:00 p.m.Idaho*No. 6
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA
W 53–2080,466[4]
October 36:00 p.m.No. 12 GeorgiaNo. 6
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA
ESPNL 27–2880,792[5]
October 106:00 p.m.at No. 6 FloridaNo. 11ESPNL 10–2285,407[6]
October 178:00 p.m.KentuckyNo. 21
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA
ESPN2L 36–3980,524[7]
October 245:00 p.m.No. 24 Mississippi State
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)
ESPN2W 41–680,040[8]
October 311:00 p.m.at Ole MissPPVL 31–37 OT50,577[9]
November 72:30 p.m.Alabama
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)
CBSL 16–2280,522[10]
November 211:30 p.m.at No. 10 Notre Dame*NBCL 36–3980,012[11]
November 271:30 p.m.at No. 13 ArkansasCBSL 14–4155,831[12]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked
Week
PollPre1234567891011121314Final
AP977661121
Coaches Poll887661221
BCSNot releasedNot released

References

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  1. ^ "1998 LSU Fighting Tigers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
  2. ^ "Brilliant Faulk leads LSU past Indians". The Commercial Appeal. September 13, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Auburn turnovers boost No. 7 LSU to 31–19 victory". The Item. September 20, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "UI escapes weather, but not LSU storm". The Coeur d'Alene Press. September 27, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Carter TDs lifts Georgia past LSU". The Commercial Appeal. October 4, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Revenge satisfying, but costly, for Gators". The Orlando Sentinel. October 11, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Wildcats nip LSU". Daily World. October 18, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "LSU takes bite out of Dawgs". The Sun Herald. October 25, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Rebels survive to win 37–31 in overtime". Enterprise-Journal. November 1, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Heartache valley". The Daily Advertiser. November 8, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Bittersweet win for Irish". The Indianapolis Star. November 22, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "LSU ends season with a thud". Alexandria Daily Town Talk. November 28, 1998. Retrieved July 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.