The team won their second consecutive Mid-American Conference (MAC) championship and was invited to the Motor City Bowl.
In the 1998 season Marshall was quarterbacked by future National Football League (NFL) starter Chad Pennington and featured future NFL player Doug Chapman as the starting running back.
The team finished the season with an overall record of 12–1 repeated as champions of the MAC East Division with a 7–1 conference mark.
Marshall met and defeated Toledo in the MAC Championship Game for the second year in a row.
By virtue of the win they were invited to the Motor City Bowl where they played the Louisville Cardinals.