1998 Alamo Bowl

1998 Builders Square Alamo Bowl
1234 Total
Kansas State 07621 34
Purdue 0171010 37
DateDecember 29, 1998
Season1998
StadiumAlamodome
LocationSan Antonio, Texas
MVPDrew Brees (QB, Purdue)
Rosevelt Colvin (DE, Purdue)
FavoriteKansas State by 14
RefereeRon Cherry (ACC)
Attendance60,780
United States TV coverage
NetworkESPN
AnnouncersRon Franklin (play-by-play), Mike Gottfried (analyst) and Adrian Karsten (sideline)
Alamo Bowl
 < 1997  1999

The 1998 Alamo Bowl featured the Kansas State Wildcats and the Purdue Boilermakers.

The Wildcats came into the game fresh off a double overtime loss in the Big 12 Championship Game to the Texas A&M Aggies, which ruined their chance at a national championship in the Fiesta Bowl. With an experienced quarterback, Michael Bishop, the Heisman Trophy runner-up, and one of the best offenses and defenses in the country, the Wildcats were generally expected to have an easy bowl victory.

The unranked Purdue Boilermakers finished fourth in the Big Ten Conference. The Boilermakers' starting quarterback Drew Brees, a sophomore, was a first-year starter and relatively inexperienced.

The Wildcats finished with a #3 ranking in the BCS and thought they deserved to play in one of the BCS bowl games. Kansas State was unable to overcome the Boilermakers, who drove 80 yards for a touchdown in the final minute to shock Kansas State, 37–34.

After this season, the "Kansas State Rule" was created, making the #3 spot an automatic bid. Kansas State finished ranked #6 in the BCS the following season, only to be left out of the BCS once again.

The win was selected as the second best win for Purdue during the Joe Tiller era by Purdue blog Off the Tracks.[1]