1998 Auburn Tigers football team

The 1998 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. After using six different centers on the offensive line due to injury, Auburn finished the season with a 3–8 record. The Tigers began the season coached by Terry Bowden, who led the team to a 1–5 start. Criticism of the coaching arose among fans and key supporters, which resulted in Bowden's resignation on October 23, the day before the Tigers played Louisiana Tech. Defensive coordinator Bill Oliver became the interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Auburn played Alabama on November 21 for the last time at Legion Field in Birmingham. Since then, the Iron Bowl has generally been hosted on an alternating basis at the respective on-campus stadium.

1998 Auburn Tigers football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Division	Western Division
Record	3–8 (1–7 SEC)
Head coach	Terry Bowden (6th season; first 6 games) Bill Oliver (interim; final 5 games)
Offensive coordinator	Rodney Allison (first 8 games) Jimbo Fisher (final 3 games)
Defensive coordinator	Bill Oliver (2nd season)
Home stadium	Jordan–Hare Stadium
Seasons ← 1997 1999 →

1998 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	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

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	7:00 pm	No. 16 Virginia*	No. 25	Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, Alabama	ESPN	L 0–19	78,315
September 12	2:30 pm	at Ole Miss		Vaught–Hemingway Stadium Oxford, Mississippi (rivalry)	FSN	W 17–0	48,371
September 19	4:00 pm	No. 7 LSU		Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, Alabama (Tiger Bowl)	ESPN	L 19–31	85,214
October 3	2:30 pm	No. 3 Tennessee		Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, Alabama (rivalry)	CBS	L 9–17	85,214
October 10	11:30 am	at Mississippi State		Scott Field Starkville, Mississippi	JPS	L 21–38	40,029
October 17	2:30 pm	at No. 5 Florida		Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, Florida (rivalry)	CBS	L 3–24	85,557
October 24	1:00 pm	Louisiana Tech*		Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, Alabama		W 32–17	74,384	^[1]
October 31	1:00 pm	No. 14 Arkansas		Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, Alabama	PPV	L 21–24	78,649
November 7	1:00 pm	Central Florida*		Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, Alabama	PPV	W 10–6	80,743
November 14	6:30 pm	No. 17 Georgia		Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, Alabama (Deep South's Oldest Rivalry)	ESPN	L 17–28	85,214
November 21	6:30 pm	at Alabama		Legion Field Birmingham, Alabama (Iron Bowl)	ESPN	L 17–31	83,091	^[2]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Rankings

See also: 1998 NCAA Division I-A football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	25	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Coaches Poll	22	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
BCS	Not released								—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Not released

References

1. "Housel: Bowden left on his own". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 25, 1998. Retrieved July 15, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Tidal wave - Alabama digs out of 2-TD hole". The Montgomery Advertiser. November 22, 1998. Retrieved February 20, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.