Sports

Major Shakeup: Penn State Fires Legendary Coach Paterno and College President

Joe Paterno Fired | Penn State

AP

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Penn State trustees fired football coach Joe Paterno and university president Graham Spanier (SPAN-yer) amid the growing furor over how the school handled sex abuse allegations against an assistant coach.

The massive shakeup Wednesday night came hours after Paterno announced that he planned to retire at the end of his 46th season.

But the outcry following the arrest of former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky on molestation charges proved too much for the board to ignore.

One key question has been why Paterno and other top school officials didn’t go to police in 2002 after being told a graduate assistant saw Sandusky assaulting a boy in a school shower.

Joe Paterno Fired | Penn State

Penn State students stand outside the Old Main building on campus protesting the handling of a child abuse scandal involving a retired Penn State assistant football coach, in State College, Pa.,Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011. Penn State trustees fired football coach Joe Paterno and university president Graham Spanier amid the growing furor over how the school handled sex abuse allegations against an assistant coach. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Penn State students stand outside the Old Main building on campus protesting the handling of a child abuse scandal involving a retired Penn State assistant football coach, in State College, Pa.,Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011. Penn State trustees fired football coach Joe Paterno and university president Graham Spanier amid the growing furor over how the school handled sex abuse allegations against an assistant coach. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Paterno says he should have done more. Spanier has said he was not told the details of the attack.

Sandusky has denied the charges.

Rodney Erickson will serve as interim school president, and defensive coordinator Tom Bradley as interim coach.

Comments (101)

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  • scion88
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:44pm

    Joe Paterno By The Numbers

    691: Number of games JoePa coached at PSU
    548: Number of games JoePa coached as head coach
    409: Number of wins as head coach (most winning coach of all time)
    24: Number of bowl victories
    5: Number of undefeated seasons
    62: Number of seasons JoePa coached (assistant and head coach)
    5: Number of JoePa’s children
    16: Number of JoePa’s grandchildren
    1: Number of horrific child molesters JoePa came to the aid of
    0: Number of molested and abused children JoePa came to the aid of

    Report Post » scion88  
    • Al J Zira
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 12:27am

      I’m not condoning any wrong-doing. I find it hard to believe Joe P would have stood by and done nothing. He insisted on his players carrying an above average school grade or he wouldn’t play them. If he did anything wrong then so be it but there’s one statistic missing from your chart; the positive influence Joe had on the kids he coached. After all those years of coaching the number of kids he helped achieve success on the field and in life are countless and we’ll never hear that stat.

      Report Post » Al J Zira  
    • teddrunk
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 10:50am

      Al, it actually easy to understand why. If this scandal blew up in 2002, there would of been parents of talented recruits, offered several scholarships, that would try and convince their kid to accept a different scholarship then Penn States. Recruiting is marketing. It’s highly competitive. It means $ millions to every school, and there are those that would easily trade shielding a pedophile, than tainting their marketing plan. It’s as simpleasf looking the other way when anyone with real character should be standing up for children.

      Report Post »  
  • ZAP
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:41pm

    Sandusky should just say he was born that way,just like the other pervs

    Report Post » ZAP  
    • theaveng
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 12:36am

      >>>One key question has been why Paterno and other top school officials didn’t go to police in 2002

      Uh… Paterno DID go to the police and report the incident. The police then investigated and talked to the grad student who witnessed the molestation. The REAL question is why the police dropped it, rather than continue studying the case?

      Report Post »  
    • The10thAmendment
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 1:03am

      There are going to be between 20 – 40 NEW charges levied against Sandusky. Firing Paterno is not just the right thing to do, it’s the “absolute” right thing to do. He facilitated that freak pedophile after being informed of Sandusky’s raping a 10 year old in the shower by McQueary by giving him an office in the Athletic Department.

      Now those dumbasses at State College are rioting for their fallen idol. Paterno has been throwing his legacy away since 1998, and he deserves nothing except a cell next to Sandusky.

      I tip my hat to John Surma for taking direct action on behalf of the BOT of Penn State. Pedophiles should die the worst kind of death, and I’m certain that the other inmates in State Penn will secure that justice.

      Report Post » The10thAmendment  
    • Bill Rowland
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 5:27am

      Jand be in line to be head coach isoe is a great great coach but to let Sandusky stay around for 9 years and be presumed as his replacement, while knowinf he was a pedophile and not reporting it is a crime in itself. It may not be a chargeable crime but it is certainly a moral lapse.
      Can Penn fire Obumbler?

      OMG

      Report Post »  
    • watashbuddyfriend
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 3:20pm

      Well, ZAP, he was born that way!

      Report Post »  
    • Alvis Prezley
      Posted on November 12, 2011 at 11:05am

      igetitnowithink

      Report Post »  
  • onegodinkansas
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:40pm

    Isn‘t this the same crime Obama’s Sexretary of Education Arne Duncan committed & the media ignored? Privy to child abuse & said & did nothing to stop it?

    Report Post »  
  • Oraclevoiceofreason
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:39pm

    Fascinating – house cleaning sometimes means the good go with the bad…sins of omission can be equally painful when consequences come your way. Too bad for Joe – but maybe he is not as innocent as fans want to believe ???

    Report Post » Oraclevoiceofreason  
    • The10thAmendment
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 1:13am

      Exactly who involved in this would you consider on the “good” side?

      Would it be Sandusky, who committed what is being discovered to be more than “40” molestations/rapes of innocent boys?

      McQueary who reported it directly to Paterno, and then shoved it to the back of his mind to secure a job on the staff?

      Paterno who reported it directly to the Campus Security, and his superiors, and yet extended an office to Sandusky knowing Sandusky was bringing little boys onto Campus and parading them around before taking them back to the Athletic Department and raping them?

      The AD who refused to push the issue when it FIRST came up in 1998? The AD who refused to press the issue when it was reported to him in 2002?

      Where’s the Compliance and Legal Department taking decisive action with policing and monitoring coming and going under their watch?

      How about the President who did everything he could to keep a lid on the criminal activity, knowing full well what was happening?

      I see Haynes, a former All American great from PSU in 2002 has made it clear that this was well known way back then, and knew the staff had failed “children”.

      Who exactly are the “good” in this? Maybe it’s the freak show student body currently rioting over a pedophile facilitator?

      I know Tom Bradley pretty well, and feel bad for him, but quite honestly, how could he have not known?

      The current PLAYERS might be the only innocents in this. The rest are guilty.

      Report Post » The10thAmendment  
    • sissykatz
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 3:57am

      The 10Th

      You stated it very well. I don’t see any “Good” in this either. I read about
      Paternos career today and when that incident was reported to him in 2002
      He was having a horrible year and I think maybe that was why he wouldn’t
      persue it. He wanted to break the WIN record more than he wanted to protect
      that 10 year old. The thing is he could have done the right thing, and still gone
      on to win. He was just not going to chance it.,I consider his WIN tainted now as
      much as BARRY BONDS breaking the reacord by using steriods.Poor kids had
      no one to protect them because they were worried about themselves. Selfish…

      Report Post »  
    • The10thAmendment
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 4:42am

      I agree with you SISSYKATZ, and the biggest losers in this whole sordid affair, are the children who will be permanently scarred. It’s a criminal shame that predators use the very thing that normal people do when addressing and trying to mentor kids, and that’s TRUST. To violate that trust is to betray every moral value of any society. For a University that has to go on the recruiting trail and enter peoples homes in pursuit of the kids, or in Sandusky’s case, to operate a center (The Second Mil) that is supposedly working with kids, including camps at Penn State, is devastating to trust bonds that are essential to building a strong program.

      This crime makes me sick to my stomach.

      Report Post » The10thAmendment  
    • Jscools
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 3:16pm

      And maybe he is …

      Report Post » Jscools  
  • kourage
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:30pm

    Paterno had a great career at Penn State…now his legacy is tarnished by his action (and inaction).

    The Penn State Board of Trustees is utterly despicable for their handling of Paterno in this, firing him before the final home game of the season. Did he stand by when horrible misdeeds were done? Sure. Could he have done more? Absolutely. But Paterno isn’t an evil guy. He’s tried to live his life with honor and teach his teams through these last 40+ years to do the same; and now he gets caught in the crossfires of a major scandal after all the good he’s brought to Penn State in making it competitive.

    Let him retire with what peace he has left, with what he can still salvage. Penn State‘s making a mistake it won’t be able to fix. See how many football recruits drop off now that JoePa’s gone.

    Report Post » kourage  
    • onegodinkansas
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:42pm

      Explain what a great guy Paterno really is to the children he allowed to continue to be sodomized.

      Report Post »  
    • Hobbs57
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:44pm

      I agree with you, but sadly, the freaking media would never allow him to make it through the last game with out dragging everything through the mud. No, they can’t be at Occupy Wall Street and follow those rapes or anything, no, that would be to easy

      Report Post » Hobbs57  
    • SHOWMESTATEGUY
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:44pm

      @ KOURAGE——

      “Penn State’s making a mistake”. The mistake Penn State made happened in 2002. That mistake was silence,

      Report Post »  
    • Ookspay
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:47pm

      If it was my kid, Jo Pa would be Jo DEAD!

      Report Post » Ookspay  
    • uxpowered
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:50pm

      Kourage: You sir are an enabler and your comments are despicable. Sounds like this cancer at Penn State goes further then the coaching staff. Great men don’t sit by idly while a child is anally raped. Paterno’s legacy is nothing less than the this act, all involved in sweeping this under the rug deserve to be prosecuted. That’s how I will remember Paterno. Here you are worried about the rest of the football season and recruits for god-sake. Wow.

      Report Post »  
    • STICKTOGETHER
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:54pm

      Paterno and the others who neglected to report this to police subjected children to pedophiles as a result of apathy, focus on football and saving their reputation. How many children could have been spared suffering had he and others done the right thing. Penn State Board of Trustees made the right decision.

      Report Post »  
    • The-Monk
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 12:00am

      I don’t like football and never have. It’s a lame sport. The average football game lasts 12 to 15 minutes total. Get a stop watch and time it. As for the sexual complaints… it reminds any other communist socialist, Marist, college, new age, POS, the Dean doesn’t care, anything goes, WH loves it and screw everyone else, ideology. Put him in jail and then put Holder, Napolitano and Barack Obama in jail.

      Report Post » The-Monk  
    • uxpowered
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 12:04am

      Yep, this cancer is far and wide:

      http://www.breitbart.tv/live-on-cnn-psu-students-chant-fk-the-trustees-in-wake-of-paterno-ouster/

      Report Post »  
    • robh
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 12:35am

      What was it that Edmund Burke said about doing nothing (“inaction”).

      Let me refresh your memory:

      “The only thing necessary for the triumph [of evil] is for good men to do nothing.”

      The victim seems so much less a victim by all the comments of sympathy for Paterno.

      “Paterno had a great career at Penn State…now his legacy is tarnished by his action (and inaction).”

      Report Post » robh  
    • PPMStudios
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 9:07am

      Paterno is a PIG!! “All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”

      Joe Pa admittedly knew about the child molestation which make him an accessory to the most heinous and vile crime against humanity; Pedophilia!!!

      Report Post » PPMStudios  
  • uxpowered
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:27pm

    No one is talking about the graduate assistant who saw the deed. Why the h*ll, if you saw someone molesting a child, would you *only* go to the coaches?? My first phone call would have been to the police after after subduing the offender. WTF. Sounds like this whole organization’s moral compass is way off.

    Report Post »  
    • SHOWMESTATEGUY
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:40pm

      Money seems to trump the moral compass more times than not. The big time money that college sport generates has corrupted many before this and will corrupt many after this.

      This whole sad affair is about protecting the money and to hell with the welfare of the boys who were victimized.

      Report Post »  
    • theEmirOfGroofunkistan
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 12:34am

      actually telling your boss is the right thing to do, but he waited until the next day to tell Joe, not the day he saw it. If he’s willing to wait a day, I’m not sure I believe he said to JoePa what is recorded in the grand jury investigation. That‘s the piece that is still missing and I can’t convict paterno until I know exactly what he knew. If it was bland and unspecific, then Joe did the right thing to push it up the chain.

      Report Post »  
    • PPMStudios
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 9:10am

      Damn Skippy! I completely agree!!

      Report Post » PPMStudios  
  • CENSAYS
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:12pm

    So… if someone saw this happen, why didnt they go to the cops first thing? The dingbat who saw Sandusky do this is the real criminal for not turning it in to the LAW…. if i see a robery in the mall, I dont go to mall management(!?!?!?!) HELLOOOOOO

    Report Post » CENSAYS  
  • garygromele
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:11pm

    Sorry Joe, you should of sacked Sandusky a long time ago…

    Report Post » garygromele  
  • horsehockey
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:11pm

    They did it for the children.

    Report Post »  
  • Ch
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:10pm

    He wishes he had done more? He wishes he had not been found out. This “man” let countless boys be raped by a pedophile because he did not want to make waves. I have NO SYMPATHY FOR A MAN WHO SEES THIS KIND OF EVIL AND WALKS AWAY. HEY FELLA, SPEND THE REST OF YOUR LIFE HAUNTED BY THOSE LITTLE BOYS.

    Report Post »  
    • Delaware Patriot
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:36pm

      Dude…I don’t think you understand how this all went down. Someone came to JoeP and told him what he saw. The man accused (Sandusky) was a well liked, well respected person at Penn State for MANY years…Wait Wait…hear me out. Once JoeP was told of the situation he immediately went to his superiors and reported what was told to him. REMEMBER…Joe DIDN’T witness ANY sexual molestation. It would have been hard for him to believe that the accused could be capable of such a thing…but he still reported it to the proper authorities and protocol.
      To publicly hang JoeP for this is a tragedy….

      Report Post »  
  • florida123
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:10pm

    Joe is a Perv just like his assistant coach. There is no other reason why Joe and the President would have just swept this under the rug! NO WAY! the assistant coach was easily replaced! They swept it because they also were playing the game…………..Sick MOFs plain and simple! I hope they arrest all who knew about these horrific act and did nothing, Then i hope the victims sue the living **** out of all of them and leave them flat azz broke!

    Report Post » florida123  
    • Delaware Patriot
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 12:46am

      Man…I can understand your outrage at child molestation…I’m with you there. Please read my above response to someone else’s outrage. You need to know the time lines and facts. Joe did what he was supposed to do. He didn’t witness the crime. But when he was told of it he immediately informed the appropriate people. Now, had he personally witnessed the crime, he would have a moral obligation to follow up. But you also understand that the accused was a well liked and respected person by ALL at Penn State. Don’t misunderstand me. This in no way justifies overlooking a crime even for a single second. Just know that JoeP was told of a crime (that he didn’t witness). Joe, I’m sure like many others, couldn’t imagine that this could be true. BUT he (JoeP) Immediately when to his bosses to relay the accusation. That was his obligation and he fulfilled it. Understand that once that info was relayed to campus security and high level administration, Sandusky (the accused) was no longer allowed on campus pending an investigation. The fault lies with top brass at Penn State not notifying local police…Mr. Paterno’s obligations were met. Sandusky was out of the picture and off campus from that moment forward. Although it wasn‘t JoeP’s place or position to “follow up” on this, he still feels as though he could have done more…There is much more…but I hope this sheds a little more light on the situation. To publicly persecute JoeP for this is outrageous!

      Report Post »  
    • sissykatz
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 4:09am

      Deleware
      You are right about him doing what may have been “required” of him.
      But that was legally not morally. He should have dialed 911 from his
      desk. I believe Paterno had suspicions for years because there were
      rumors. He was teaching his guys to do more it was just that he didn’t
      do as he preached.

      Report Post »  
  • lynnzie
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:04pm

    Alan: Joe Paterno knew that his assistant coach was accused of having a sexual encounter with a young boy, and the grad student who saw it reported it directly to him. He did not call police. He did not even confront this pervert and ask what he had to say about the accusation. What more could you possibly need to know? Old Joe has swan dived right off his pedastal.

    Report Post »  
  • broker0101
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:01pm

    JoePa was a great coach back in the 50′s, when subordinate women and young boys knew their place.

    Report Post » broker0101  
  • avgconservative
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:59pm

    It‘s George Bush’s fault.

    Report Post » avgconservative  
  • vadaann
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:58pm

    I agree with ALAN, I hope Joe is going to be ok also, he spent his life doing a good job, he doesn’t deserve this as an ending to his career. I pray he will get his good name back. Best to you Jo Pa.

    Report Post »  
    • Ookspay
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:15pm

      You and ALAN need to get your priorities straight, It‘s a flippin’ sport, “Jo Pa?” Children were molested and victimized by a sick rotten fat bastard and Jo Pa did nothing, sheesh… Doofeses’s.

      Report Post » Ookspay  
  • SHOWMESTATEGUY
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:52pm

    This is all about money. The football program at Penn St.brought in a lot of money. Because of the massive amount of money the football program generated the people who were responsible looked the other way. I always admired Penn St football, but after this it will take awhile before I can make that statement again.

    A college football coach in the showers with a 10 year old boy and nobody did anything?

    Report Post »  
  • Katydidnt
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:52pm

    I feel bad for the players. Hopefully, they have already impressed who they needed to impress to get selected in the draft.

    Report Post »  
    • Ookspay
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:20pm

      Really? Start banging your head against a wall until your brain swells to a more suitable size.

      Report Post » Ookspay  
  • TheValley
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:50pm

    This situation is reaching this point because you have a board of trustees that possess neither ****** or a spine, they care not about right and wrong but appearances and the bottom line are what they hold on high. Spanier, and the board of trustees should be lynched, I hope that taxpayer funded re-education camp goes down the toilet.

    Report Post » TheValley  
    • florida123
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:13pm

      oh so i guess you must be like minded with Idiot Pervert Joe! How in the hell could anyone justify anything Joe did in this case?? His willingness to stay quiet can only point to one conclusion, He and the President were also Raping these poor Kids…………..

      Report Post » florida123  
    • TheBMT
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 12:03am

      I feel raped from the 8% price increase every semester from the board of trustees.

      Report Post »  
  • Beckaj
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:48pm

    Fix the title typo.

    Report Post »  
  • Black_Dynamite
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:48pm

    Sad but Coach had to go!

    http://www.5linx.net/L476471/products.asp

    Report Post » Black_Dynamite  
  • scion88
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:48pm

    Joepa grab your torch…the tribe has spoken.

    Report Post » scion88  
  • Mister_John_Galt
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:46pm

    Now we just need accessory to child molestation charges to be filed on all of them!

    Report Post »  
  • broker0101
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:45pm

    You’d think someone would have caught on earlier, during decades of the Penn State football program being referred to as, “Child Molester U”… oh, wait, it was, “Linebacker U”.

    Report Post » broker0101  
  • Alan
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:44pm

    I’m waiting until more is known. I pray Joe’s gonna come out okay.

    Report Post »  
    • Ookspay
      Posted on November 9, 2011 at 11:07pm

      Not Me, I don’t care “Joe” is okay or not, it’s the molested little boys that I am concerned about. Joe was complicit in his silence. He knew about this crap in 2002. When it comes to children and this type of stuff EVERYONE needs to do all that they can to do everything in their power to stop it!

      If Joe is found to be responsible in a cover-up in any way, I hope he spends the rest of his life in jail!

      Report Post » Ookspay  
  • UBETHECHANGE
    Posted on November 9, 2011 at 10:42pm

    Typo Blaze…Coach not Coah.

    Report Post »  
    • middlecolony
      Posted on November 10, 2011 at 4:55am

      Why is McQueary, a man who observed a child getting molested and walked away, still on the team? He is just as culpable as the rest of the staff who knew about this felonious crime. PSU needs to hire from outside the university and clean house.

      Report Post »  
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