Penn State's Paterno proves his way works
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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
So you wanted to try this Joe Paterno's way?
Then know the rules that never eroded: You climbed in the back and he directed, because the right way was always the right way, amen, and once you found it you never veered. Paterno knew this, even before Penn State's most recent 10-1 season proved it beyond a doubt.
You opted for Joe Paterno's way, and you were better off looping stitches through your lips than objecting to his instinct. Sure, challenge him -- he enjoyed debate -- but keep the arguments microscopic, about details too small to define him. About schedules, about blocking schemes, about lineup changes.
Carolyn Kaster, Associated PressFormer players and assistants said Joe Paterno lived by a bible of basic rules, his rules, and they scripted his coaching conviction that grades and wins could coexist.
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Game: No. 3 Penn State vs. No. 22 Florida State
When: Jan. 3, 8 p.m.
TV: WTAE
 Don't approach him, armed with evidence, and encourage him to step down from his job. That's what four men -- including Penn State's president -- did one year ago, according to multiple sources, and all they found, in return, was a coach telling them they didn't have a clue.
A half-century of Paterno's personal history provided one claim: The man had an internal compass that never lied. He knew he would marry Sue Pohland even when she was a freshman in college, though she was 13 years younger, called him "Mister" and would have backed away if he had spilled his guts about love.
Former players and assistants said he lived by a bible of basic rules, his rules, and they scripted his coaching conviction that grades and wins could coexist. The Grand Experiment, folks called it, though to Paterno the notion never felt like an experiment.
He chose unforgiving punishments for players who drank too much or skipped class, like when he cut star wide receiver Joe Jurevicius from the travel roster just before the Citrus Bowl Jan. 1, 1998. Yes, he was willing to worsen his team to strengthen his way. He donated his millions to the school library and his minutes to film study. He pledged simplicity -- a blue blazer wardrobe, a modest house. He decided he would never fire an assistant coach, finding it senseless to let one go when he could help make him better. "You showed you were committed to it," former assistant Kenny Jackson said, "and he'd die with you."
 Â Born: Dec. 21, 1926
High school: Brooklyn Prep
College: Brown
Years as PSU head coach: 40
Family: wife, Sue; daughters Diana and Mary Kathryn; sons David, Jay and Scott
Career highlights: 353 wins, 20 bowl wins, two national championships, five undefeated seasons
WHAT PATERNO SAID THEN ...
"I have coached great football players for 55 years. If I tell you that Michael Robinson is one of the best football players I have ever coached and one of the best in the country, don't question me." -- Oct. 19, 2004
"If you think that I am going to back out of it because I am intimidated, you are wrong. ... I don't see any reason to say, 'I am going to get out of here this year, next year or what year.' I don't mean that to be cocky, stubborn or anything like that. I am just trying to do what is right." -- Nov. 9, 2004
First Published December 25, 2005 12:00 am
