Two years ago, team doctors and trainers couldn't get Joe Paterno off the sideline, even after Paterno broke his left leg and tore two knee ligaments in a brutal sideline collision in Madison, Wis.
On Saturday, Paterno will return to Camp Randall Stadium for the first time since his accident, but Paterno may coach his undefeated Nittany Lions from the booth because of a sore left leg and an arthritic hip. Both are ailments that have forced him to miss time on the sideline this season. Paterno coached from the booth for the second half of the Temple game and for the entirety of the Illinois and Purdue contests.
Paterno has still not made up his mind whether he will coach against the Badgers from the sideline or the press box.
At his Tuesday press conference, Paterno looked like he was walking better, limping less than in recent weeks, and seemed to be more upbeat when answering questions than in previous sessions with the media this season.
"I miss running out on the field," Paterno said. "I would be dishonest if I told you otherwise. I used to love to get out there, and the crowd fired me up and the whole bit. But there are a lot worse things that can happen to you."
On Nov. 4, 2006, Penn State fans held their breath as tight end Andrew Quarless was knocked out of bounds into Paterno. Quarless' helmet contacted Paterno's left knee, and the coach's leg buckled. Paterno looked hurt, but he sat down on the bench and team trainers had to coax him to leave the field.
Wisconsin head coach, Bret Bielema, then in his first year at the helm for the Badgers, remembered that moment.
"I have great respect," Bielema said on a conference call earlier this week. "I know basically that he broke his leg, and for him to jump up and stand over there for a certain amount of time and then they finally got him to sit down on a cart, shows the kind of intensity and toughness that he has."
Paterno said the 2006 incident made it harder for him to get around, but also said he's felt no lingering effects from the injuries he sustained that day.
"I don't think it's changed my life in a dramatic way," Paterno said of the 2006 collision. "I think it's obviously made it a little more difficult to do some things I used to enjoy doing. But that wasn't the result of the broken leg."
Instead, an onside kick attempted by Paterno earlier this season has left his right knee feeling worse than the surgically repaired left -- which Paterno said feels fine.
"I can't walk like I used to walk all the time," Paterno said. "I used to love to get up and walk five, six miles. But I can't do that and still go out and go to practice for a couple hours. It just wears down on me. But what I have can be fixed, so we'll work on it."
To make up for the time he's missed on the sidelines, Paterno said he's been more active during the week in the locker room, visiting with his players. For more comfort in practice, Paterno has been riding shotgun in a golf cart. The cart has allowed him to, as Paterno joked, get to his players faster than when he could walk so he can harass them if they make a mistake.
Lions have expressed concerns for their coach's health over the past few weeks, but senior wideout Jordan Norwood, who was himself hobbled for the past two weeks, said he hasn't noticed much of a difference in Paterno's state of mind since the 2006 incident and his troubles now.
"He's not too different, I don't think," Norwood said Tuesday. "I'm not sure if he's going to be on the sideline this Saturday or not, but he hasn't changed much at all. He's still passionate about the game, passionate about wanting to win, and he's pushing us that way this week also."
Bielema -- who is 1-1 against Paterno -- hinted that it wouldn't affect the way Penn State plays this weekend if Paterno coaches from the booth again.
"I know this, he's got great intensity," Bielema said. "I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of one of those orders that he's giving from the press box."
