When news of Penn State joining the Big 10 Conference broke during finals week, surprise and disbelief were the common reactions among Penn State fans. It was no different for the coaches of those teams that will be affected.

"Maybe I'll coach a little bit longer if we go to the Big 10," Coach Joe Paterno said at a Holiday Bowl media conference prior to the announcement. He added that he'd like to coach in a Rose Bowl.

Other Penn State coaches, however, were told not to comment until the official announcement was made. Now that the move is official, it is evident that not everybody is pleased.

"At first I felt a real stomach sickness to be honest," wrestling coach Rich Lorenzo. "All I could think about was the Eastern Wrestling League, how much work and effort and sweat we all put into that league to build it up to one of the top three in the United States."

"From a soccer point of view, we have spent the last three years working hard on building up the Atlantic 10 soccer conference," Coach Barry Gorman said. "The Atlantic 10 sent three teams to the NCAA playoffs last year. So, things were looking good for Atlantic 10 soccer, and now that's up in the air a little bit."

Officials who made the decision say the reason why Penn State was brought into the conference was because of academics. But Lorenzo, who has been outspoken on the move, said academics was not why Penn State joined the conference.

"They keep saying athletics wasn't the only reason, but I think the presidents are just deceiving themselves because they're not deceiving the public," Lorenzo said. "We would have went to the Ivy League if that is what they wanted.

"Their chemistry, physics and engineering department didn't call ours to say that we have to get together, otherwise we're not going to succeed here in the United States."

But some coaches see advantages. The Big 10 baseball conference is one of the best in the country. That's why baseball coach Shorty Stoner, although surprised about the move to the Big 10, could not hide his happiness.

"It gives us an opportunity to get into a conference that's pretty strong in baseball," Stoner said. "They fund their programs very well and they go at it in a very serious manner. We're hoping that Penn State follows suit and we go in there with a serious attitude and want to be real competitive."

Men's lacrosse coach Glenn Thiel says the move may get his team out of the shadow of the basketball program.

"We've kind of nurtured our own program for years, and let's face it, the Atlantic 10 was a basketball conference," Thiel said. "Yeah, they played other sports, but it's a basketball conference."

Even Lorenzo admitted there are advantages to the move.

"One of the advantages is you're going into a conference that is the No. 1 conference in the United States with the number of qualifiers to the NCAAs," Lorenzo said. "They've had the most national team titles -- that's because of (perennial power) Iowa. And we'll get a chance to wrestle other top-flight schools."

When the decision to invite Penn State into the Big 10, athletic directors and coaches from the Big 10 said they should have been consulted about the decision. But the decision has been made and the coaches have to abide by it, which is the view that Gorman is taking.

"Professionally this is a decision that has greater bearings than we can possibly perceive, and it has to be made at a higher level," Gorman said. "I'm convinced it was made for the good of Penn State academically and athletically. Therefore, as an employee and a supporter of Penn State's decisions, I have to agree with it."