1998 Penn State Nittany Lions football team

1998 Penn State Nittany Lions football
Lambert-Meadowlands Trophy
Outback Bowl champion
Outback Bowl, W 26–14 vs. Kentucky
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 15
APNo. 17
Record9–3 (5–3 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorFran Ganter (15th season)
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorJerry Sandusky (22nd season)
Base defense4–3
Captains
Home stadiumBeaver Stadium
1998 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
No. 6 Wisconsin $+  7 1   11 1  
No. 2 Ohio State %+  7 1   11 1  
No. 12 Michigan +  7 1   10 3  
No. 24 Purdue  6 2   9 4  
No. 17 Penn State  5 3   9 3  
Michigan State  4 4   6 6  
Indiana  2 6   4 7  
Minnesota  2 6   5 6  
Illinois  2 6   3 8  
Iowa  2 6   3 8  
Northwestern  0 8   3 9  
  • $ BCS representative as conference champion
  • % BCS at-large representative
  • + Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1998 Penn State Nittany Lions football team represented the Pennsylvania State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by 33rd-year head coach Joe Paterno, the Nittany Lions compiled an overall record of 9–3 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, placing fifth in the Big Ten. Penn State was invited to the Outback Bowl, where the Nittany Lions defeated Kentucky. The team played home games at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania.