The turf inside Beaver Stadium was shredded to pieces; Joe Paterno was dressed in attire other than his rolled-up khakis and sneakers, and Zack Mills wore a blue and white shirt; not the one he wears on game day, though.
I've only ever been a fan at Beaver Stadium, meshed in the student section with the rest of Penn State, cheering after a big play and nodding my head in despair after falling just short of a victory. But as I headed into Beaver Stadium to attend Paterno's Tuesday press conference for a sports journalism class assignment, I saw Penn State football from a different point of view.
I walked through the tunnel to find 108,000 empty seats. I sat in the media room as Paterno strutted up to the microphone and hardly anyone acknowledged his presence until he began responding to questions. I thought about how Mills and Andy Guman took time out to satisfy to the media in the middle of their school day.
Furthermore, I think we forget sometimes that the Nittany Lion football team is a bunch of students, trying to pursue an education, and not only a team that plays football on Saturday afternoons. Their average day consists of classes between 8 a.m. and 2:15 p.m., meetings at 2:45 followed by practice and a team dinner. And then the homework begins -- at study hours.
They aren't professionals. They don't get paid. They can't accept endorsements. Yet they must endure the ridicule and aggravation that comes along with a football town - so-called fans, critics, and students that do not know how to cope with one unfortunate season.
Those of you constantly bashing Paterno's football program and saying "Joe Must Go," should take a few minutes to read over Rick Reilly's No Ordinary Joe. Reilly put together, what I consider, a masterpiece on why Paterno, based on his lifetime achievements, was more than deserving of the Sportsman of the Year Award in 1986.
When Paterno decides to retire, I'm sure he'll be honored to no end. And when he's gone, fans will be wishing the energetic man who devoted his life to Penn State was still pacing the sidelines. So, don't wait until his coaching days are over. Appreciate one of the most prominent figures in football history coaching your Nittany Lions, whether they are winning or losing. True fans don't quit their team.
I could ramble on about how Paterno led Penn State to two national titles, finished undefeated on five occasions, posted a 20-9-1 bowl record in 37 years, recorded 20 finishes in the top ten of the national rankings and received four-Coach of the Year awards -- but that's a little redundant.
It's really about those 250 former players he sent to the NFL. Not necessarily the talent he developed, but more importantly the well-rounded individuals he produced and the 124 Academic All-Big Ten football selections Penn State has honored since 1993, the most in any conference.
It seems that life comes first to Paterno and his players -- then football. He's honest when he turns down some of the best football players in the country because they wouldn't be able to handle the academic load at Penn State. His determination is about graduating 80 percent of his athletes. His consideration is about giving Josh Hannum permission to leave spring practice when his father was diagnosed with kidney cancer during his freshman year.
And you're probably asking about Paterno's role as tyrant of the members of the "felon team" that received alcohol citations and such? I'm not saying it's right, but relatively. It was a few mishaps, and drew attention to because the incidents appeared on the front page of the newspapers, unlike any other ordinary Penn State student who gets in trouble with the police over the drinking law.
How about Scott Shirley, Damone Jones, and Dave Costlow who established the Lift for Life foundation that raised $13,000 last summer for the Kidney Cancer Association.
Adam Taliaferro, who gives motivational speeches after he was paralyzed and learned to walk a year later.
Andy Ryland and his family, who have hosted 40 foster kids in their home.
Mills, who after a struggling game against Boston College, presented Kira Shaw, who through the Make-A-Wish foundation was able to be a Penn State cheerleader for a day, with a bouquet of flowers.
For awhile, I didn't think much about the hearts and souls that exists under those pads and inside the helmets, nor why Paterno is worthy of his reign as head coach.
It took a gathering with Paterno after his press conference for me to appreciate the pride and joy nestled in those eyes behind those thick glasses, his free-spirited humor, and the commitment he endures not only to Penn State football but to the University and everyone involved.
And his players are students, like you and I -- not just a 3-8 record.
