Tag: Joe Paterno

Former Penn. State football coach Joe Paterno has lost his battle with lung cancer. He died today.

The Washington Post interviewed him at his home recently.

Paterno’s hope is that time will be his ally when it comes to judging what he built, versus what broke down. “I’m not 31 years old trying to prove something to anybody,” he said. “I know where I am.” This is where he is: wracked by radiation and chemotherapy, in a wheelchair with a broken pelvis, and “shocked and saddened” as he struggles to explain a breakdown of devastating proportions.

RIP Mr. Paterno.

The media is giddy with excitement over the Jerry Sandusky preliminary hearing tomorrow. The Court decided to allow live-tweeting for real-time coverage.

Sandusky's lawyer says no plea deal is in the works. Some of the alleged victims will testify.

Also not having a great week: Joe Paterno, who broke his pelvis in a fall yesterday.

Sad news for Joe Paterno. As if this month hasn't been bad enough, his son says he has been diagnosed with a treatable form of lung cancer.

I'm sending good thoughts his way. Hopefully the media will focus on the more important aspect of the story -- Sandusky -- and give the Paternos some privacy to deal with this terrible illness.

I don't follow college sports. I never heard of Joe Paterno or Jerry Sandusky before last night, and I didn't click through the myriad of headlines to see who they are until this morning. Now, having read the grand jury report and several articles and opinion pieces, here's what I see.

An 84 year old coach with an unblemished record, who devoted his life to coaching a football team, has been abruptly fired because in 2002, a graduate student told him about witnessing what he perceived to be a former assistant coach's sexual assault on a young boy in a school shower. The assistant coach, Jerry Sandusky, retired in 1999, but retained many school privileges as part of his severance package.

Paterno timely reported the allegation to his superiors. They handled the allegation internally and didn't take it to the police. Sandusky was told he could no longer bring minors on campus. The graduate student, Mike McQueary, also told his father about what he observed, but not the police. Nor did he intervene to stop the perceived assault. He's now a coach for the team. [More..]