Joe Paterno is Just a Man

COMMENTARY | Joe Paterno was just a man, a human. All humans make mistakes and it is up to other humans to decide whether or not to forgive them for their mistakes.

It is true that Joe Paterno has affected many people; I don’t even watch football and I know who he is. He has worked with many young men and guided them through his football program, only to release them into the world with better knowledge of teamwork, perseverance, goal-setting, and everything else that comes with athletics. He obviously enjoyed working so much that he worked for 61 years at the university. Had it not been for the scandal with Mr. Sandusky, he probably would have died in the locker room or on the field at Penn State, thus propelling him to the heavenly paradise of football saints.

According to Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, “He [Paterno] will go down as the greatest football coach in the history of the game.” This is where the controversy comes into play. While many believe Paterno deserves to be honored, some believe that he deserves nothing but shame: Bill Simonsen of The Huge Show in Michigan said, “He is no icon to me and never will be. I don’t care how many championships or games he won. His career ended in the middle of the sickest story we have seen in American sports history.”

Now that Paterno has passed, we will never know what he knew, what he didn’t know, and what he could have done … the list goes on and on. But, does that really matter now that he is dead? Yes, there are children who have been scarred for life. But, there have been many, many more who have been positively affected by this man. If we’re strictly looking at numbers, and numbers don’t lie, I’d say Coach Paterno has helped more people than he has hurt.

Like I said, Joe Paterno was a human. He put his clothes on just like the rest of us. He went to work, paid his taxes, and probably kissed his wife before going to bed. His devotion to football and Penn State University defined him for 61 years. I wish the best for his family, for those who knew him best, for his past and current players, and for anyone else who was affected by him.


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