You Wouldn’t Understand
by Dennis Mitchell

Remember the advertisement slogan “It’s a Jeep Thing, You Wouldn’t Understand”? The saying found its way onto bumper stickers, t-shirts and other promotional items. It became so mainstream that “It’s a (insert word here) thing” really could’ve worked for any product. I recently found myself using this phrase with Penn State. Now say it with me “It’s a Penn State thing. You wouldn’t understand.” About half of you get this.

Three months ago a major scandal hit the heart of Central Pennsylvania.Our beloved Penn State University was being torn down by the media and by outsiders who don’t know Joe. The Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal had suddenly become the Joe Paterno scandal, but why? Most of the country ripped Joe Pa because he could have done more to prevent these heinous acts and yes Joe himself admitted to wishing he had done more. But the truth is Joe took the right action. By going to the higher chain of command after being told by Mike McQuerey that there may have been intercourse involved, Coach Paterno did what he was supposed to do. As Nike Co-Founder Phil Knight recently pointed out at Joe Pa’s memorial service, “The matter was in the hands of a world-class university and a president with an outstanding national reputation.”

What many don’t realize is just how incredible Joe Paterno really was. I often hear outsiders say “Yes he was a great football coach but….” Well the fact is this debate has nothing to do with Joe Paterno the football coach, and everything to do with Joe Paterno the humanitarian. First and foremost, he was a family man who loved his wife and children with all of his heart and yes he had hundreds of thousands of children. Education came before football and he was constantly telling prospective recruits and incoming students about the world-class education they would receive at Penn State University. Many times he was overheard telling players, if you ever fall behind in your school work or you need help, come see me. His contributions to PSU are far into the millions of dollars. Even through the turmoil and controversy that overshadowed his last few weeks on earth, Joe and wife, Sue, donated a hefty $200,000 to the University that he helped to build. And then there are the stories you never hear about, like Joe Pa covering the medical bills of a student with a brain tumor and all anonymously.

Trust me when I say this is not a guy who would try to cover anything up. Coach Paterno stands for everything that’s right in the world. The amount of greatness that flowed through Joe’s body was seen and felt by anyone who’s ever come into contact with him. This is the Paterno legacy. To those who do not bleed blue and white, don’t hail from Nittany Lion country, and never knew Joe Pa as anything but a football coach I say this: ‘It’s a Penn State thing. You wouldn’t understand.’

Joe Paterno Was Not Penn State
by Bryan Jordan

Joe Pa…where do I even begin?

Joe Paterno passed away Sunday morning, January 22nd. He was 85 years old, and since the day he left us, speculation on how he should be remembered still remains open for debate. Living in Central Pennsylvania, only a touchdown pass and field goal away from Happy Valley, may leave me in the minority with what I am about to say.

Joe Paterno, was a great football coach, possibly the best that ever lived. His accomplishments and records would take me way past my limit here. Joe Pa was a great father of five. Paterno was great at Penn State. He built a program, an empire (61 years at the school, 46 as head football coach). He had a student body that followed his every move, chanting "WE ARE PENN STATE" from one end zone of Beaver Stadium to the front door of his modest home. The school library, funded by himself, and wife, Sue, bears his name. As I said, Joe Paterno was "great at Penn State" but he was not Penn State...and far from it. And evidence of that came down this past November 5th.

It was on that day that one of the ugliest and most hideous of scandals broke. Paterno's longtime assistant and defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky was arrested on 40 counts relating to sexual abuse of eight young boys over a 15-year period. I repeat, Sandusky, Paterno’s assistant, worked closely with Paterno for years, an intricate part of Paterno's program, Paterno's Empire, all of this, under Paterno's watch. Are you starting to see a common theme here?

Eight young boys and possibly more were allegedly sexually abused by this monster who worked, coached, traveled, dined, and schmoozed on a daily basis with "THE ONE AND ONLY" Joe Paterno. Oh, and the "beloved" Joe Pa who was aware of these allegations, later admitted he "should" have done more. IF Joe Paterno was Penn State, he would have done his absolute best to follow up and not cover up this disgusting scandal that will not be going away anytime soon.

Another detail that will forever confuse me is that Paterno thought he was big enough to override the Board of Trustees and decide for himself the proper time to step down, while these victims and their families continued to suffer. Sorry Joe, you lived a very good life. You were a great football coach, a great father, grandfather, and husband, but if you were "truly" Penn State you would have saved many families a much bigger loss compared to one that comes on a football field.

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