I've made my general disdain for college football well-known throughout the history of this blog. So today is truly an exception in that I'm doing a college football post. More specifically, I'm writing about the sad ending of the Joe Paterno Era at Penn State. He was at the school for 46 years, yet this is how he goes out. What's even worse, this is how he's going to be remembered.
The ending came swiftly and abruptly. Personally, I think Joe Pa was scapegoated for something that wasn't at all his fault. It's not Joe Paterno's fault that Jerry Sandusky is a pervert. Is he completely blameless in this scandal? Absolutely not! But I also don't think he's anywhere near as responsible for everything as some people are making him out to be. Could he have done more? Yes. But you're never going to be able to convince me that Joe Paterno turned a blind eye to what was going on, either. I've never met the man, but he doesn't strike me as the type to put up with something as disgusting as that. His guilt is more by association than anything else.
If it were up to me, Joe Paterno wouldn't have been fired immediately. I would've let him finish out the season then "retire," which is what he "decided" to do on his own during the day on Wednesday. He deserved that. Joe Paterno has meant so much to Penn State University that he had earned the right to go out on his own terms. In fact, he IS Penn State to so many people.
However, while I don't necessarily agree with it, I do see the point that a number of people made about Paterno's role in the scandal. Penn State had no choice. Whether he was directly involved or not, he's the biggest figure in this mess, so he was going to be the one that took the fall. The fact that the Penn State Board of Directors has been trying to get rid of Paterno for years didn't help his case, either. It's similar to when Bobby Knight was fired at Indiana. Whether or not they wanted to let Knight go, they had to cut ties with him before things got any worse. Penn State pretty clearly wanted to let Paterno go. This finally gave them their reason.
But, like I said, the saddest part about all this (outside of those boys who were victimized by Sandusky, many of whom have never been the same again) is that Joe Paterno, one of the greatest coaches in college football history, will be remembered because of how he went out. It didn't end on his terms. He was fired. He was fired because of sick actions by a depraved individual who happened to be a Penn State assistant coach. It happened under his watch, so it was his "fault." Nevermind all the good things he did in 46 years, one really bad thing is all it took to bring him down.
Instead, I'm going to choose to remember Joe Paterno for all those good things. He came to Penn State in 1950 and took over as head coach in 1966. In those 46 years, the most by any coach with one program in history, he won a record 409 games, including 24 bowl victories in 37 appearances. The Nittany Lions won national championships (at least the college football version of such) in 1982 and 1986 and had five undefeated seasons. (It was Penn State's undefeated 1994 team getting screwed out of the national championship that began my realization that college football is a complete joke, as well as my conscious decision to stop caring about college football at all as long as that ridiculous system is still in place.) In addition, he sent so many guys to the NFL that you can't even begin to name them all (Penn State is nicknamed "Linebacker U" for a reason). Perhaps most importantly, his players graduated.
Joe Paterno has been cleared of any legal wrongdoing (at least for now). The criminal charges are reserved for Jerry Sandusky, who deserves to go away for a long time if these allegations prove to be true, as well as former AD Tim Curley and Penn State President Graham Spanier, who was fired along with Paterno on Wednesday. But let's not forget that this isn't about any of them. It's about these innocent kids who will never be the same because of the actions of one sick man.
Many fans are obviously upset. That's always the case when a legend falls. There are plenty of other fans who feel exactly the opposite. They think Paterno got what he deserved. My stance? While not innocent, Joe Paterno is still one of the many victims in this scandal. He shouldn't go out like this.
Penn State's fine season will continue, as will its football program. But it's safe to say that it'll never be the same again. Ask Indiana basketball about that one. "Happy" Valley? Not right now it isn't.
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