April 22, 1999
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Senior quarterback Jarious Jackson has been elected captain of the 1999 University of Notre Dame football team by vote of players on the Irish squad.
Jackson’s honor marks only the third time in 32 seasons that Notre Dame has had a single football captain. Beginning in 1968, the Irish have had two or more captains in every season except 1986 (Mike Kovaleski) and 1991 (Rodney Culver).
Jackson, a 6-1, 228-pound Tupelo, Miss., native, produced one of the most productive and efficient seasons in 1998 of any quarterback in Irish history. He completed 104 of his 188 passes in ’98 for 1,740 yards, with only six interceptions to go with 13 touchdown passes. He also ranked second on the team in rushing with 441 yards on 113 attempts (and three TDs).
In his first year as the starter at quarterback, he opened in 11 contests — and finished 13th nationally in passing efficiency (149.5 rating points) and 31st in total offense (218.1 yards per game). His current 154.4 career pass efficiency rating ranks second all-time at Notre Dame — and his career interception avoidance figure (only seven in 220 attempts) also is second-best among all-time Irish signalcallers. His 2,181 yards of total offense in ’98 ranked as the fourth best single-season total at Notre Dame — with Joe Theismann, Rick Mirer and Steve Beuerlein producing the top three figures.
Among his ’98 highlights were 12 straight pass completions to start the Navy game, three TD runs vs. Stanford (matching Paul Hornung’s single-game achievement in 1956 as a record for a quarterback) and a career-high 276 passing yards vs. LSU.