I'm not going to defend Paterno in any way - he made decisions and has faced the appropriate consequences. But it's hard for a non-Sports fan to appreciate who he was - he was not just some college football coach, any more than JK Rowling was some fantasy writer, or Einstein was some physicist, or Lincoln was some President.
He had become this icon for all that was good and pure in the world of college sports. He's been head coach at Penn State since 1966. He's had tremendous success as a coach (the only person enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame before he retired), and an excellent reputation as a human being. If sports people make lists of the greatest coaches of all time, pro or college, he's a sure-fire for top 10 all time, and is widely considered the greatest living college sports figure. The award for the college football coach who has made the best positive impact on his community is the Joe Paterno award.
I can see why, if you didn't know who he was, the mixed feelings of many sports folk would seem strange. But for people who follow college football, he's unquestionably the most beloved figure in the sport, and it's hard to see heroes of that magnitude fall. I wish it weren't true. Nobody can live up to the kind of reputation he had, but it was awfully nice to pretend that Joe Paterno, the Legend, was real.
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Date: 2011-11-10 11:37 pm (UTC)He had become this icon for all that was good and pure in the world of college sports. He's been head coach at Penn State since 1966. He's had tremendous success as a coach (the only person enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame before he retired), and an excellent reputation as a human being. If sports people make lists of the greatest coaches of all time, pro or college, he's a sure-fire for top 10 all time, and is widely considered the greatest living college sports figure. The award for the college football coach who has made the best positive impact on his community is the Joe Paterno award.
I can see why, if you didn't know who he was, the mixed feelings of many sports folk would seem strange. But for people who follow college football, he's unquestionably the most beloved figure in the sport, and it's hard to see heroes of that magnitude fall. I wish it weren't true. Nobody can live up to the kind of reputation he had, but it was awfully nice to pretend that Joe Paterno, the Legend, was real.