Joe Paterno has been great for Penn State. He has been a great coach for so many years, and his legacy will forever live on.

JoePa was recently named the 13th best coach of all time on Sporting News' list of the top 50 coaches of all time.

He was the third college football coach featured on the list, behind Paul "Bear" Bryant of Alabama and Knute Rockne of Notre Dame.

To be the third best ever in your profession is pretty darn impressive, but he might just be the best of all time. I admit slight bias, but the facts are there.

He has more wins than any Division 1A (or as it is now referred to, FBS) coach.

He has more than Bobby Bowden not even counting the wins the NCAA will most likely strip from Bowden.

That's not even taking into account that some of Bowden's wins were at Samford, which is now a Division 1AA (FCS) school, but he was there before Division 1 was divided like it is presently.

The Sporting News voters deserve credit for placing our beloved coach ahead of Bowden on the list.

As No. 1 on the wins list, Paterno obviously has more wins than both coaches who are ranked ahead of him.

What separates the coaches, and rightfully so, is national championships. Bryant (3rd on Sporting News' list) and Rockne (10th) each won six national championships at their schools.

Paterno has only led the Nittany Lions to two national titles, at least on paper.

Many of you will remember attending the Penn State-Coastal Carolina game this past Labor Day weekend.

That day was the reunion for the 1968 and 1969 teams -- the first two of his five undefeated seasons.

Of his five undefeated seasons, he only has one national championship to show for it. In 1982, The Lions were crowned champions with one loss.

Until recently, the national champion was determined by the human polls.

If the voters had deemed the Lions the best team in a couple of those seasons, JoePa would most likely find himself in the top ten on this list and could possibly have landed ahead of Bryant.

Regardless of his ranking and whether he is best or not, Joe Pa has meant a lot to this university and he is an icon, and in the college football world he is a living legend.

He has recently acquired the reputation of a crotchety, old man who has over stayed his welcome

The fact of the matter is over staying his welcome would be impossible. JoePa will always be with Penn State even after he is no longer with us on the sidelines (or in the coach's booth).

My opinion on when he should retire is irrelevant.

I think if I was in his shoes I would've retired (or never stuck with Penn State long enough to be in a situation to "retire" as a Lion) a long, long time ago.

But I am not Joe Paterno, and I will never be in his shoes.

I don't have his abilities or the heart he has for this university.

According to this poll, he is the 13th best coach of all time for any sport.

That's enough to stay as long as you please. Not to mention, he puts winning teams out on the field.

So what if he's a little grumpy in press conferences or to the refs?

We are Penn State; Joe Paterno is Penn State; he is our coach, and he will most likely lead his 44th edition of Nittany Lion football to another successful season this fall.

Eric Book is a sophomore majoring in journalism and is The Daily Collegian's Tuesday columnist. His e-mail address is ejb262@psu.edu.