By Jared Trexler
The Phanatic Magazine
King of Prussia, PA -- Joe Paterno still doesn't look his age. Even if he now walks like it.
Still recovering from a broken leg that pushed one of college football's historic figures from the sideline to the press box, Paterno speaks of his "hunger for coaching" and "passion for the game," even with a slight limp and furrowed brow complete with the lines of aging.
He has plenty of on- and off-field motivation to keep him going. The Nittany Lions that will step foot in Beaver Stadium September 1 against Florida International will be a preseason top-20 squad with speed at skill positions on both sides of the ball -- a trait lacking during the dark ages at the beginning of the 21st century.
Penn State also will keep alive the tradition of its namesake, "Linebacker U" with heralded returnee Dan Connor leading a talented groups that includes Sean Lee, Tyrell Sales and Jerome Hayes.
The Nittany Lions should push Michigan, Ohio State and Wisconsin in the conference's upper tier with two of those three games taking place in University Park (The Nits travel to Ann Arbor on Saturday, September 22).
In the classroom, Penn State was again recognized by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) for its due diligence in graduating its pigskin stars of tomorrow. If football isn't in their future, Paterno's students of the game normally have a degree to fall back on.
Penn State's 83 percent football graduation rate ranked seventh out of the 119 Division 1-A institutions and first in the Big 10.
Yet, Paterno won't publicly denounce the mix between team chemistry and its organic counterpart at other institutions. In fact, despite classroom accolades, off-field issues have weighed on the 80-year-old Paterno to the point of no defense.
Instead of answering countless questions on quarterback Anthony Morelli's maturation process and wide receiver Chris Bell's freakishly impressive spring, Paterno answered inquiries into the legal situations of a pair of players during a Meet-and-Greet in King of Prussia on Monday.
He was joined by men's basketball coach Ed DeChellis and new women's coach Coquese Washington.
The spotlight, positive or otherwise, was squarely on Paterno, who is also caught in the middle of another battle in which he plays no staring role.
The Harrisburg Patriot-News and the Penn State administration are in a legal tussle over the public salary disclosure of the university's administrators and employees. The state Supreme Court heard arguments earlier in the month.
Yet, Paterno predominantly fielded questions about an early-April apartment fight involving several members of the Penn State football team. Charges were eventually dropped against most of the players, most notably star cornerback Justin King, but starting safety Anthony Scirrotto (who led the conference in interceptions last season) and defensive tackle Chris Baker are set to stand trial for their parts in the incident.
Paterno heard Scirrotto's side of the story, yet didn't condone the actions. The football team, as punishment, will clean Beaver Stadium after every home game this season.
"My biggest concern is what's going to come out of that incident that we had," Paterno said. "I'm hopeful that people will keep their heads, won't go overboard on it. What it basically comes down to is, it was a fight. I'm not condoning our kids in it."
His words trail off, possibly to leave lingering doubt about his thought process and his players' involvement in the fight at Gateway Apartments on College Avenue. Most likely, the trail of silence serves the purpose of changing the subject.
Paterno feels more comfortable talking about his team, and is openly adamant about his future on the sidelines.
You can see it in his eyes. He's apprehensive to stand on the sideline during game action for the first time since the collision that ended his season. Yet, he's also ready to put the off-season behind him and get to the true work.
It begins September 1 against FIU. By his attitude, you would have thought Monday's shindig in KOP was a pre-game presser.
Joe is already game ready.
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"From the End of this Bench" appears in this space as often as humanly possible. You can email thoughts, linked articles or story ideas to Jared Trexler at jtrexler@phanaticmag.com.
2 comments:
If JoPa is so great, why year after year do his players have character issues?
What coach doesn't deal with character issues in 21st century college football?
Ohio State, Florida State, Michigan, Miami, Tennessee -- you can run the gambit of big-time programs with off-field issues. No program is immune, no coach with the time and power to monitor each student athlete's whereabouts at every moment. Has Paterno's program made more news off the field than in the past? Absolutely. I point to the change in college culture, particularly the one in Happy Valley. It's a party school and athletes think they are above reprive, even if the coach warns them of certain consequences.
Is Paterno to blame? Yes. And at times he has deflected legal instances as "no big deal," and he's justly taken heat for such a mentality. He seems to have learned his lesson this time with team punishment -- cleaning Beaver Stadium, volunteering at the Special Olympics, Habitat for Humanity (Joe's wife Sue's pet project).
Is it the answer? No, but there really isn't a clear cut one. It's the sad state of college football nowadays, a culture of which Paterno's Nits used to be immune.
Not anymore.
Thanks for the comment!
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