A few weeks ago, an NFL linebacker coach wanted to come to State College to privately workout former Penn State linebacker Tim Shaw at Penn State's facilities.

But because Joe Paterno doesn't often allow scouts into the Nittany Lion facilities, Shaw said last week he wasn't allowed to do the workout. And, as expected, that's something Shaw said he was "not too happy" about. Then, a snowstorm limited Shaw's ability to travel to the linebacker coach's location.

"They [Penn State] don't do the most to help guys in my situation out, I'll say that," Shaw said. "Not a lot of practices are open, and there's limited time when scouts can come in. Even now during the process, the facility is kind of closed off to scouts except for the Pro Day. It's tough, but that's Joe's way, so we try to respect that."

Joe's way -- the closed way -- is the only way at Penn State. And it's something that hurts potential NFL draft picks from his program.

Take Shaw's case for example. He came to Penn State as a running back, was then switched to linebacker, and finally defensive end, where he couldn't fully display his football talents because he was undersized.

Shaw performed well, though, finishing with seven sacks last season. He never complained and still doesn't. But the truth is, had he stayed at linebacker, where he said he feels most comfortable, he might not be such a big question mark in this year's NFL Draft.

To his credit, Shaw has helped himself much this winter and spring, impressing NFL teams at the NFL Scouting Combine and Penn State Pro Day with his 4.43 40-yard dash time and athleticism.

But there's only so much he can do on his own. But if he were to have the Penn State facilities at his disposal, he would have more opportunities to impress NFL teams.

"There's no such thing as too much exposure," said former Penn State defensive end Matt Rice, who went through the same process last year that Shaw is experiencing now and acknowledged that Paterno runs "a tight ship."

Rice said when players come to Penn State, they're not usually made aware of Paterno's stringent policies, but they learn as they go along.

"Once you join the ranks of college, you find out how much a certain level of politics that's involved in the game," he said. "Some players know how to play the politics."

Paterno's politicking is a game of power. He runs the program the way he wants, and his staff and players accept that as fact. And though Paterno has earned the right to run the program the way he sees fit, he also has a responsibility to help his players move on to the next level -- even if it means opening his program slightly.

After all, Shaw made more than a few sacrifices for Paterno and his team. The least Paterno could do is let Shaw run a few drills in Holuba Hall.