It was a day to remember at Penn State University on Wednesday November 9, 2011. The firing of head coach Joe Paterno was an event which won’t be easily forgotten.
Wednesday, 9:30 am:
Yesterday rumors started swirling around that Joe Paterno would be stepping down from his Head Coach position. The media went on a frenzy with the NFL even posting this as breaking news on their website.
Scott Paterno, one of his five children, quieted some of the reports by announcing on Twitter that the rumors were false.
He also told his followers that he was now working on setting up an off campus press conference since Joe Pa’s regular Tuesday conference was canceled by the school officials.
While the media swarmed Joe Pa as he tried to get in his car to go to practice, students took matters into their own hands. A Facebook event was created urging students to stand outside of his home to show their support. They did, and not only at his residence.
Throughout the night students gathered all over campus and downtown to show their support for Joe Pa, and to show that we as a 
student body will not be defined by the actions of those above us.
Wednesday, 1 PM
Today, Joe Paterno announced that he was going to retire at the end of the season. In his statement he said, “My goals now are to keep my commitments to my players and staff and finish the season with dignity and determination.”
Some are shocked, but feel that he should finish out the season as head coach. Others want him fired immediately, and do not understand why some people want him to finish out the season. Some are even calling him selfish and arrogant.
To those who feel he is selfish, you have no idea.
Joe Paterno is more than just football to the students, his players, and the community. He has raised around 13 million dollars to donate towards our library. Several millions of that were his own.
You would think a man with as much fame as him would live in mansion in a secluded, gated community that is miles from campus. I’ve seen his house on several occasions. It does not look like more than two stories. It is barely a five minute walk from campus.
At almost 85 years old, people have seen him walking by himself back home from practice. I see celebrities with people holding their umbrellas every day.
He is one of the least paid coaches in the Big Ten Conference. Our president has the highest salary of any president of a state 
institution in the country.
So please tell me how this is selfish, especially when I have not listed everything he has done outside of football.
For those who say he is arrogant by telling the Board of Trustees what to do:
It’s one thing for him to say “You better not fire me because I’m the greatest coach there ever was,” but he DID not say that. He told them to not talk about him because they have other issues that are more important than him alone.
Yes, Joe Paterno could and should have done more, but at least he stepped up and admitted such.
But in all honesty, Joe Paterno is not what solely matters in this whole ordeal. He is only part of it, but is getting treated like he acted alone.
We are losing sight of what this is really about. It is about the sexual abuse of children by one man that slipped through the cracks.
I would like to know why everyone is focused on Joe Paterno when Jerry Sandusky has been released and living almost scathe free by the media?
Thursday 12:30 AM
About two hours ago, Joe Paterno was fired…over the phone.
We couldn’t give a man that has been at this university for 61 years a better exit than a phone call?
I don’t agree with the current riot and the violence that is taking place.
I do however agree with a peaceful rally.
Several stations and people have been saying that students think this is about football and that we are out there just to be on television. They are also saying we don’t support the victims.
These statements are not correct. Several candle lighting visuals are being planned for these victims. Has the media reported on that? No. We changed our official “Whiteout” to a “Blueout” to show our support for the victims without anybody telling us to. Several organizations on campus work with the Second Mile. Believe me, we support the victims.
This is more than about football to us. I have nothing else to say on that.
To the students:
I understand. I feel your anger and sorrow, but let’s act responsibly. We are trying to show the country who we are. This is NOT who we are.
Turning over a media truck, throwing rocks at police, a lamp post is now broken, and so are street signs. This is not the answer. The media is eating this up. Actions like these are fueling them. We now look like an out of control group of young adults.
This will only hurt us in the long run.
We ARE better than this.
Very well written Delores. Great job.
Joe is getting the attention because he is the biggest name and because it was his former employee and one of his closest confidants perpetrating these terrible acts.
What us non-Penn State Lemmings are having trouble understanding is, how in the world did Joe, McQueary, Spanier, Curley and Schultz do so little in a time of crisis? My theory is that Joe was instrumental in sweeping the whole thing under the carpet and that the other men went along with him. It seems to me that Joe was trying to protect his program and his legacy instead of doing the right thing. Frankly, I’m shocked that the grand-jury cleared Joe, to me he is clearly culpable.
E-Money
I agree with your assesment, but I will state for the 2nd time,
The DA has Publicly said a few times, that “Paterno is not a suspect in this investigation AT THIS TIME”
The “AT THIS TIME” finish to her statement tells me there will likley be charges for Joe Paterno and others , about the cover-up, that will occur after the criminal proceedings with Sandusky are complete..
Delores, you are bereft of moral thought to ask the question why the focus is not on Sandusky versus Paterno , Paterno selfishly placed himself, the football program over the welfare of children, shameful article
I love all you moral do-gooders that have never had a lapse of judgement in your life.
Joe Pa should have done more — he said it himself. He trusted his chain of command to investigate and take appropriate action and they didn’t.
He DIDN’T commit the crime.
He DIDN’T witness the crime.
What he DID do is trust those above him to do the right thing and for that he is guilty.
Joe Pa has done more good then bad in his life and when he gets judge by the only being that TRULY matter (not you sheeple that go on every whim the media throws at you) — he will be allowed into the gates without question.
All that Paterno accomplished, & all the $$$ that he raised doesn’t mean a f^#@ing thing. What the hell does that have to do this. None of that changes the fact that, he along with the entire athletics dept, turned a blind eye to Sandusky’s actions, & then coved up the entire thing. Is it a coincidence, that after charges were dropped in 98, that he mysteriously retires at the top of his career, with no explanation. Then the DA that dropped the charges, mysteriously disappears, presumed dead, & all of the case files, computer & hard drive disappears, & winds up in the river, right before being turned over to the new DA. And does anyone else find it suspicious, that McQuery is an assistant coach now. This entire thing stinks. Wait until this thing is done, your precious PSU, will have 47 years of abuse, cover-ups, murder of that DA, & google amounts of Civil action.
Birdo, you are an idiot. Are you his son, or a PSU, alumni? We aren’t do gooders, we are good human beings, with common sense, you dope. How the f^#@ do you know all of the good he has done? Just because he gave $13M for a library, & gives to charities doesn’t make him a saint, & doesn’t change the FACT, that he didn’t do nearly enough, or even follow up on this. What is the first thing people say, when they find out about peoples true side of them, “I can’t believe it, he was always such a nice, quiet man.”
OH YEAH, BTW, the count is up to 20+ victims now! Anyone that backs, or makes any type of excuses, for anyone involved in this, has serious, moral, priority & psychological problems! You need to talk to a shrink, & pray much more!
Sure BirdoBeamen, we’ve all had lapses in judgement, but hopefully not of the severity that allows numerous other people physical and emotional pain for years to come.
If and when I do finally have a lapse in judgement of that magnitude and my employer decides that I have to go, hopefully I’ll still have my wits about me to understand that my actions (or lack of actions) warranted my release, and hopefully I won’t be selfish enough to make a statement about giving my life to my job and this is the thanks I get.
I’m curious what exactly went through Joe’s head a few days/weeks later when he saw Jerry Sandusky on campus as if nothing happened. Do you think he even gave it a 2nd thought, or was he too worried about the game-plan for Saturday’s game?
Yes DCar, I’m not saying Sandusky is innocent, I could really care less about the guy and if its TRUE I hope he burns in hell — the count is up to 20? Really? I guess the pending lawsuit and opportunity to acquire millions has nothing to do with that. Sure.
Again, JOE PA did not commit the crime or even witness it — the fact that the media is FOCUSED on JOE PA instead of the alleged molester and the victims is SICKENING. The same people that are saying Joe didn’t do enough are the same ones that aren’t giving the true crime ENOUGH attention!
Joe Pa and what he “didn’t do morally” should be a backfill story to all of this….instead, it’s the HEADLINE — and THAT is what I have a problem with.
Birdo – you are 100% correct there. BUT you are in error for expecting anything better or more ethical from the media.
Birdo – “What he DID do is trust those above him to do the right thing and for that he is guilty. ”
You are correct there – BUT, when he saw that those above him did not do the right thing, he accepted it, and allowed this to be brushed under the rug. He should have kept an eye on the situation and when he noticed no action was being taken to prevent further incidents – THEN he enabled it to continue by keeping the guy around in the program and not saying anything.
If you told the cops about a muderer in your appartment building, they did nothing, and you knew he was still killing people, you just keep on doing nothing? Hell no
your a friggin pompous ignorant idiot. You sound like some old german saying well he did do some bad things but Hitler did a lot of great things also.
You are so wrong on the issues your argument is plain stupid .Just imagine your little ten year old brother was being butt screwed up the ass by a 60 year old man and Paterno and several other adults saw it, were told about it and did not go to the police . How would you feel about that? Better yet how about this same old screwed up man grabs you and rapes you , don’t you think that they should go to the police and report your rape……GROW UP
This is a tough one…. The best way you can say this is that everyone, everyone that had knowledge of potential inapropriate acts against minors by Sandusky, demonstrated poor judgement by failing to ensure the acts were properly reported and followed up on. For whatever reason, people decided NOT to make law enforcement aware of the situation and let them do a complete investigation, and for that, they failed. Is it fair to say the AD failed Paterno – yes, and sometimes bad things happen to good people..
I agree with those who say easier said then done, you have a very valid point – I can think of examples where I knew the right thing to do was report something, but I didn’t, times when I reported something and had it blow back on me (hey, I was just the messenger).. it is a very fine line… we would all like to think we had we walked in on Sandusky and a 10 year old we would have slapped a UFC beat down with the left habd, while dialing 911 with the right and at the same time offering the poor victim those magical words of advice that the world really isn’t a bad place – but in reality, most people cringe and pull back – it takes a while to process. Do I think less of McQuery – hell yes – a most definite revocation of his man card – yell you sick bastard what are you doing – at least – call the cops (what was his dad thinking – hang up, call the cops, NOW)
Paterno is the headline because he has always been the headline – hopefully in time, the stench from this will fade away, Paterno will not be the first second or last person to ever have a personal relationship ruin his pristine image – but 1 oh shit ruins 10 attaboys, and this was one very, very serious oh shit –
What Paterno did by his inactions in 2002 was to allow more kids to be at risk at University Facilities and University Sponsored Camps & Events and allowed his close friend more access.. Sandusky had a paid settlement to avoise a court case on an abuse charges in 1998, Does anyone thinks it’s poosible that Paterno and University Officials weren’t aware of this.. So then in 1999 Sandusky decides to “retire” from Coaching at Penn State (at the healthy Age of 53 Years old) when just a few earlier was talked about being the next HC at Penn State and in fact had offers to Coach University of Maryland and other Colleges during the 80’s & 90’s .. This Sandusky was paid to drop out of sight, but allowed access to school facilities for camps and progrmas which I am sure he made some good $$$$ doing.. Coach Paterno can’t control what this Sandusky does or doesn’t do, but he can sure as hell not give access to University facilites, University Camps and Programs which will only increases the access that Sandusky has with young kids.. I guess Joe didn’t have enough “not on my damn watch mentality” to go the authorities because of his close relationship with Sandusck, maybe he didn’t want to believe it, but there is not doubt that Paterno (no matter who inadvertant) put more kids in more harms way by allowing all this access to Sandusky..
We all know Penn State is a fine Universiveristy specializing in Engineering,Agriculture and Defense Systems, etc,etc
So the old saying that “Every Cction casues a Reaction” could also be applied as well with a new saying “Every Inaction, can still cause a Reaction”
when you think about it.
WIP had just reported that some writer from NY(forget his name) has reported that more allegations are coming. That the 2nd mile organization was pimping out young boys to older men, Some sort of sex ring. This was reported by some NY reporter. This thing is gonna become massive.
Paulman, you hit the nail on the head. Joe helped cover it up and kept Sandusky in a position to keep molesting more children.
Birdo,
People like you are a part of the problem. Technically, he did NOT commit a crime but if you think for one minute that Joe isn’t just as responsible you are sick. Not to mention the assistant who actually witnessed Sandusky raping a 10year old boy, walk away, told Joe Pa and basically washed his hands clean should have been fired also. Joe knew what was going on and still allowed his campus facilities to be at Sandusky’s disposal is sickening.
Joe is putting on a facade. He IS Penn State and anyone thinks he didn’t orchestrate this cover up are crazy! What about the missing prosecutor??
to every “JOE-PA IS INNOCENT!” person. If you came home one day, and saw your neighbor, having sex with his own son… and then you go home, and tell your wife, or significant other to call the cops, and then the next day, you still see the man at the house, and see him every day after that… you wouldnt for a second do some investigating on your own, or maybe see if the authorities were alerted? HE TOLD THE MAN IN CHARGE OF CAMPUS POLICE!!! never even called a state officer, or anyone else outside of PSU.
And to say that joe is not selfish, is insanity, for starters he tried to finish the season, and would NEVER of left the team regardless of how much actual coaching he still does. Secondly he let someone else handle a situation where he knew something was wrong, instead of handling it himself, and putting himself in it, just because he has an average house, and not a huge salary… doesnt make him not selfish.
The reason people are trying to give him a pass, is because he is joe paterno, but the reason he is just as much as fault… is because HE IS JOE PATERNO… he can do anything he wants at that school, and should of made sure this was handled properly…. HE IS A GOD THERE, and did nothing to protect these children. He is no worse than anyone else involved, because he had the power to do more. If he would of called the cops instead of telling schultz, he would be coaching on saturday.
I can’t understand why Asst Coach McQueary is still on the Staff,
He will be on the Sidelines or Press Box during Saturday’s game.. He needs dismissed also, for he saw the incident, did nothing to save the 10 year Old Bot from continuing to be molested and then called his Parents who in turn told him to talk to Joe Paterno.. What kind of Man does this.. Clean house and now
Since the crime Sandusky committed is so heinous, especially if you read the Grand Jury report, let’s change it for the sake of argument.
Mike McQueary walks through the shower area and sees Sandusky beating a Penn State college coed. McQueary sees this and walks away, doesn’t try to stop it, calls his father, then sits down with Paterno and tells him what he saw. Paterno then talks to the athletic Director and reports what he was told. The Athletic Director Tim Curley then informed Gary Schultz the Senior Vice-President of Finance. From there nothing happens. Now my questions are: are McQueary’s and Paterno’s actions what we would expect from leaders of men? Would you feel good letting your sons play at Penn State? If a college coed is seen being beaten, shouldn’t McQueary try to stop it, shouldn’t Paterno stay on top of something that was happening under his watch, shouldn’t Curley and Shultz report it to police? Why was Sandusky still allowed to be around the program? I know of no one that would allow an incident like this happen to a grown woman let alone a small child. The entire football staff and most of the upper administration should be removed. If you love Penn State then you would want it to become “clean” again.
the kind of man who does this paulman is the same type of man cloaked in the catholic church who knows about, witnesses molestation of young boys but does nothing, its about protecting the brand, the institution, the pope (paterno) and the money, burn it to the ground as clueless stated
I agree Jake, which is why I haven’t stepped foot in a Catholic Church in a long time.. I was raised a Catholic and even attended Catholic High School in South Jersey.. The Catholic Hiearchy’s and Pope’s lack of Accountability and Responsibility and even today, the Pope still refuses to acknowledge fault with the Church I find repulsive and something that I cannot accept or support.. (I am personally not a fan of Organized Religions for they are some of the most corrupt,back room deals around..and the fact they continue to get Tax-exempt Status for their billions in Revenues, Properties, & Possesions in this day and age still pisses me off)
Excellent post Average Joe.. I concur 100%..
Joe should have called the authorities outside the university and should have resigned immediatley instead of saying he woud at the end of the year. He knows better than what he did.
This is going to uncover a massive conspiracy, & cover up. Now there’s rumors, & information coming out of child sex slaves, murder cover-up, & secret societies. This is getting even more horrific than I originally thought. I didn’t think that was possible. They better investigate this in the Supreme Court, before people start disappearing again.
I try to have faith in humanity, but every time something like this happens, makes me question how much longer we have left. This might be the ugliest thing that I’ve ever heard, or seen, & I’ve seen some horrible, crazy $#!t!