LONGTIME PENN STATE FOOTBALL COACH, JOE PATERNO, DEAD AT 85
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| Joe Paterno : Photo retrieved from www.chicagonow.com |
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Joe Paterno, one of the most
successful college football coaches in history, has died at the age of 85, surrounded by family members at Mount Nittany Medical Center (Schlabach,
2012). Paterno’s cause of death was
confirmed as a spreading lung cancer, metastatic small cell carcinoma of the
lung (Schlabach, 2012). Paterno’s son initially stated that his father, Joe,
was diagnosed with a treatable form of lung cancer during a visit for a
bronchial illness in 2011(Schlabach, 2012).
However, two months after the diagnosis, he lost his battle with the
disease. Joe Paterno leaves behind his
wife, five children, 17 grandchildren, and the Penn State family (Bio,
2014). The family of Paterno is
requesting privacy at this time but released a statement Sunday morning
announcing his death:
“His
loss leaves a void in our lives that will never be filled. He died as he lived. He fought hard until the end, stayed
positive, thought only of others and constantly reminded everyone of how
blessed his life had been…He was a man devoted to his family, his university,
his players and his community” (Schlabach, 2012).
Joe Paterno was born December 21, 1926, in Brooklyn,
New York. He attended college at Brown
University, where he was the star quarterback, leading his team to an 8-1
season, his senior year. Paterno joined
his college coach at Penn State University, serving as the assistant coach and
eventually became head coach in 1966. In
46 seasons, Paterno led his team to 37 bowl appearances with 24 wins and in
2011 he set a record with 409 career wins, the most for any Division 1 coach (Bio,
2014).
During his time as head coach, Joe Paterno became a
beloved figure at Penn State and received the nickname, “JoePa.” He coined the mantra, “Success with honor”
but his reputation could be forever tarnished when he came under fire during
the Sandusky scandal. Paterno supposedly
knew of an attack that had occurred in 2002 but did little to follow up on the
allegation, creating a firestorm from the media that he had not done enough to
address the situation (Bio, 2014).
“Success without honor is an
unseasoned dish; it will satisfy your hunger, but it won't taste good.”
—Joe
Paterno
Although his later years were scarred by scandal, Paterno believed that success was not just measured on the field, but off the field as well. Under his reign, The Nittany Lions consistently ranked as the best in the Big Ten for graduating players (Schlabach, 2012). Joe Paterno leaves behind a legacy of social, academic, and athletic greatness marred by controvery.
Contact: Katie Haepers at
khaepers@gmail.com
References:
Joseph Vincent Paterno.
(2014). The Biography.com website. Retrieved 03:21, Oct 14, 2014, from http://www.biography.com/people/joe-paterno-9434584.
Schlaback, M.,
(2012). Joe Paterno, 85, dies in state college. Retrieved from www.espn.go.com:
http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7489238/joe-paterno-ex-penn-state-nittany-lions-coach-dies-85-2-month-cancer-fight
SNHU News
October 15, 2014
“Controversial Ex Football Coach,
Joe Paterno, dies at age 85 in State College Pa.”
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