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Octogenarian Paterno worth rooting for this season

By Tim Dahlberg, The Associated Press September 1, 2011

Joe Paterno has coached college football for, well, forever.

Only recently, though, did he question his toughness after a player blindsided him in practice, sending him to the hospital for two days. The hit came just after Paterno chastised his players for “babying themselves” over minor aches and pains.

“The good Lord has a way of doing things,” Paterno said, “because he said to me after shooting my mouth off, ‘Bounce back, kid. Let’s see how tough you are.’ ’’

Plenty tough. So tough that he plans to be coaching Saturday when Penn State opens its season against Indiana State despite still recovering from his injuries. And in a U.S. college football landscape that looks quite different from the one Paterno saw in 1966, when he became head coach, that’s comforting no matter where your loyalties lie.

Hard not to root for Paterno, the only octogenarian on the sidelines this season in major college football. This is a guy who was already eligible for Social Security at the time his current players were just being born.

And, finally, JoePa’s health. That’s something of a concern to every 84-year-old, but there are no other 84-year-olds coaching major college football from the sidelines. That’s Paterno’s plan, and he says there’s a “50-50” chance he’ll be with right there with his team Saturday, though doctors are advising him to begin his 46th season as head coach from an upstairs booth while he continues to heal.

“Being upstairs is for the birds,” Paterno said.

The bigger question is whether an increasingly frail Paterno should still be coaching at all. Personally, I’m with the group that wants him there as long as he wants to be there.

I can’t wait for his 50th anniversary season.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
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