New Penn St Rumor

If he makes it to jail, he'll probably be a trophy kill for someone.  Just like that priest a few years ago

BS...you guys watch too much TV

I have sort of a long-winded theory about Paterno, sort of along the lines of what Badlands was alluding to.  I put it in an email to a couple of my CFB pals earlier today (read if interested):

Like a lot of people, I suspect, I’ve been trying to reconcile the Paterno I’ve seen over the course of my life with the astounding allegations of the past week.  I think I may finally have figured it out…

Joe was raised a poor Italian kid in Brooklyn, at a time when there were a lot of colorful, and connected, characters running around.  Perhaps it’s no coincidence then that his reaction to the Sandusky matter was much more Vito Corleone than Bear Bryant.  First, “we handle this ourselves.  No outsiders.”  In this case, that meant allegations of child rape were addressed not by the PSU or State College Police, the Centre County Sheriff or even the PA State Boys.  Nope, they were “taken care of” in-house.  Second, Joe probably thought he had imposed the ultimate penalty on Sandusky: “today, I turn my back on you; you’re out of the family business.”  In the Nittany Family, there was no greater sanction.  Having taken that step Don Joe probably thought he had done all he could do.

But, dark glasses and Italian surname aside, Joe wasn’t actually a Don.  He couldn’t just have Jerry whacked in the Pine Barrens.  So, having made this despicable bargain [“you will retire quietly; and this will be the last we speak of this”], Coach Paterno was now in a bit of a spot.  When Sandusky came poking around looking for access to the PSU name and its facilities, Joe was hard-pressed to tell him no.  Sure, he could turn Sandusky in, but how could he possibly explain the previous deal he had made previously?  Sandusky (obviously a very sick man) then continued to leverage his PSU connection to prey on little boys for another decade or so.  In the end, Don JoPa turned out to be just a football coach.

When I first saw the news of the Board’s decision last night, I assumed they were sticking it to Joe – paying him back for not leaving when they told him to five years ago – and that their refusal to allow him a final home game was needlessly mean-spirited.  The more I learn, though, it seems like they might actually have been trying to do him a favor.  This is only going to get worse for him.