1998 USC Trojans football team

1998 USC Trojans football
1998 USC Trojans football
Sun Bowl, L 19–28 vs. TCU
Conference	Pacific-10 Conference
Record	8–5 (5–3 Pac-10)
Head coach	Paul Hackett (1st season);
Offensive coordinator	Hue Jackson (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Bill Young (1st season)
Base defense	4–3
Captains	Adam Abrams; Chris Claiborne; Billy Miller; Chad Morton;
Home stadium	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
	Seasons ← 1997 1999 →

The 1998 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California (USC) as a member of Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) during the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their first year under head coach Paul Hackett, the Trojans compiled an overall record of 8-5 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, tying for third place in the Pac-10, and outscored opponents 346 to 241. USC was invited to the Sun Bowl, where the Trojans lost to TCU. The team played home games at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles. It was the Trojans' 75th anniversary playing at the Coliseum.

ConferencePacific-10 Conference

Record8–5 (5–3 Pac-10)

Headcoach

Paul Hackett (1st season)

OffensivecoordinatorHue Jackson (2nd season)

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1998 Pacific-10 Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 8 UCLA $	8	–	0	10	–	2
No. 4 Arizona	7	–	1	12	–	1
Oregon	5	–	3	8	–	4
USC	5	–	3	8	–	5
Washington	4	–	4	6	–	6
Arizona State	4	–	4	5	–	6
California	3	–	5	5	–	6
Oregon State	2	–	6	5	–	6
Stanford	2	–	6	3	–	8
Washington State	0	–	8	3	–	8

$ – BCS representative as conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

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This was Hackett's only winning season and bowl appearance at USC. After three wins, including an opener against Purdue in the Pigskin Classic, USC was ranked as high as No. 18 in the AP poll, but lost two of its next three and dropped out of the rankings for the rest of the season. During halftime of the game against UCLA, 91-year-old USC "Super Fan" Giles Pellerin died while watching his 797th consecutive USC football game.^[1]

Quarterback Carson Palmer led the team in passing, completing 130 of 235 passes for 1,755 yards with seven touchdowns and six interceptions. Chad Morton led the team in rushing with 199 carries for 985 yards and six touchdowns. R. Jay Soward led the team in receiving yards with 44 catches for 679 yards and six touchdowns; Billy Miller also had 49 catches for 623 yards and six touchdowns.^[2]

[1]

[2]

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
August 30	11:30 a.m.	Purdue*		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (Pigskin Classic)	ABC	W 27–17	56,623
September 12	7:30 p.m.	San Diego State*	No. 22	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	FSNW2	W 35–6	49,927
September 19	7:00 p.m.	Oregon State	No. 18	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	FSNW2	W 40–20	45,629
September 26	12:30 p.m.	at No. 10 Florida State*	No. 18	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ABC	L 10–30	79,815	^[3]
October 3	4:00 p.m.	Arizona State	No. 21	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	ABC	W 35–24	56,093
October 10	3:30 p.m.	California	No. 19	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	FSN	L 31–32	65,678
October 17	7:15 p.m.	at Washington State		Martin Stadium Pullman, WA	FSN	W 42–14	31,178
October 24	3:30 p.m.	at No. 12 Oregon		Autzen Stadium Eugene, OR	FSN	L 13–17	45,807
October 31	12:30 p.m.	Washington		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	ABC	W 33–10	62,276
November 7	3:30 p.m.	at Stanford		Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA (rivalry)	FSN	W 34–9	43,250
November 21	12:30 p.m.	at No. 3 UCLA		Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA (Victory Bell)	ABC	L 17–34	88,080
November 28	5:00 p.m.	No. 9 Notre Dame*		Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (rivalry)	ABC	W 10–0	90,069
December 31	11:00 a.m.	vs. TCU*		Sun Bowl El Paso, TX (Sun Bowl)	CBS	L 19–28	46,612
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Pacific time

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	RV	22	18	18	21	19	—	—	—	—	—	RV	—	—	—	RV
Coaches Poll	RV	23	16	17	22	20	—	—	—	—	—	RV	—	—	RV	—
BCS	Not released								—	—	—	20	—	—	—	Not released

	1	2	3	4	Total
Boilermakers	14	3	0	0	17
Trojans	7	3	7	10	27

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aztecs	0	6	0	0	6
No. 22 Trojans	7	14	0	14	35

	1	2	3	4	Total
Beavers	7	3	7	3	20
No. 18 Trojans	7	10	3	20	40

1998 USC Trojans football team

Schedule

Rankings

Game summaries

vs Purdue

vs San Diego State

vs Oregon State

at No. 10 Florida State

vs Arizona State

vs California

at Washington State

at No. 12 Oregon

vs Washington

at Stanford

at No. 3 UCLA

vs No. 9 Notre Dame

Sun Bowl (vs TCU)

Personnel

Coaching staff

Roster

Awards

References

Related Articles

Timelines

Top Qs

Fact Checks

1998 USC Trojans coaching staff
Name	Position	Year at USC	Alma mater (year)
Paul Hackett	Head coach	1st	UC Davis (1969)
Steve Greatwood	Offensive line	1st	Oregon (1981)
Hue Jackson	Offensive coordinator/running backs	2nd	Pacific (1987)
Ken O'Brien	Quarterbacks	1st	UC Davis (1983)
Ed Orgeron	Defensive line	1st	Northwestern State (1984)
Larry Petroff	Tight ends/recruiting coordinator	1st	Ashland College (1973)
Shawn Slocum	Linebackers	1st	Texas A&M (1987)
Dennis Thurman	Secondary	6th	USC (1978)
Mike Wilson	Wide receivers	2nd	Washington State (1981)
Bill Young	Defensive coordinator	1st	Oklahoma State (1967)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Trojans	0	3	13	3	19
Horned Frogs	14	7	7	0	28