Joe Pa Has Left The Building

AP is reporting that Joe Paterno, 85, has died. All of us who consider ourselves College Football fans are saddened today to hear this news.

I’m a little pissed off (ok, a lot) that every article I’ve found out there announcing Joe Pa’s passing is dedicating a mere 2-3 paragraphs on his football legacy, and 6-12 on the scandal that surrounded his final days. There’ll be none of that mess here; Joe Paterno was a hero in my mind in the world of Collegiate Athletics, and he deserves a day of mourning and remembrance about his life, his accomplishments, and the many hundreds of lives he affected as the coach at Penn State.

On a personal note, Paterno was 31 when I was born and began coaching at Penn State when I was 8. Having grown up in walking distance to College Park Maryland, and being a huge Terrapins fan… I was no big fan of Paterno – our record against Penn State in football is not one to brag about. At 1 – 35 – 1, anyone suggesting that these two teams had a “rivalry” would rightly be looked at as a babbling fool.

We lost our first game in 1917, an away game, by a score of 57 to zip. At the last outing in 1993 – a home game – we saw Paterno’s Lions run up the score 70 – 7. But… having our butts routinely handed to us aside… Paterno influenced my College Football enthusiasm a great deal; he was a legend even back then, and the hype that surrounded his uncanny ability to turn moderate rosters into winners captured this growing boy’s interest and heightened my anticipation, every new season, that maybe…JUST maybe… we can get one from those damn Nittany Lions this year. We never did of course, but Paterno brought out the best in a lot of us… even those of us hoping and praying he’d lose.

Joe Paterno was, nonetheless, the winningest coach in NCAA Division I College football history, and he holds this record for a reason; he was good at what he did. He deserves to be remembered for that, and for what he did for that College and the lives of the many many people he touched.

I’m sorry to hear of Joe Pa’s death, although at 85 and with his medical issues, I thank God for His mercy that Joe can go home now and be at peace… and that he will not have to endure anymore suffering. He lived a good life, meant a great deal to a great many people, and he will be missed.

My heart goes out to the family, and my prayers will continue for them that their mourning and suffering at his loss will quickly be replaced with the happiness and joy in remembering all the many good things his 85 years on this earth brought to them.