And it’s Joe Paterno:
UNIVERSITY PARK — Penn State coach Joe Paterno, speaking with members of the media on Thursday, reinforced he has no immediate plans to retire.
Paterno, who turns 81 on Dec. 21, said he hopes to coach another “three, four, five years,” presuming he is physically able.
He also said he thinks that his 2008 team “could be in the thick of things for the national championship.”
Paterno also defended some of the actions of his players that have resulted in legal troubles and suspensions.
That’s the first real statement by either side as Paterno enters the last year of his contract. A pre-emptive strike, if you will. Personally, I don’t care if he’s physically able or not. 2008 should be Joe Paterno’s last year as Penn State head coach.
There have been multiple rumors of coaching changes, including the possible retirement of Galen Hall. Could this move by Joe Paterno be a stalling tactic to allow Jay Paterno more experience as the Penn State Offensive Coordinator, possibly clearing the way for Jay to take over for his father in “three, four, five years”?
I think that’s the plan from Joe’s perspective. I really do. Whether the fans, alumni, Board of Trustees, etc. go for it is kind of irrelevant at this point. They wouldn’t, but it doesn’t matter. Joe and Sue Paterno want Jay to be the next head coach, and damn it, Joe will stall as long as God lets him so Jay can become the head coach at Penn State.
As one of the frequent posters at FightOnState.com likes to say, Penn State doesn’t have a football program, it has a stubborn old man’s hobby. In that sense, it’s a war of attrition. Joe and Jay will hang on, any assistants with other aspirations (retirement, a coordinator or head coaching job elsewhere, etc.) will eventually flake away, and Jay will be the last man standing.
[UPDATE: FightOnState.com's Mark Brennan has an excellent and comprehensive rundown of the Paterno "press conference", decisively beating the newspapers to the punch. Yay, the internets! It's easily Paterno's most forthcoming and frank discussion in recent memory.]
In other news, Joe Paterno’s salary has been released and it’s…predictably underwhelming: $512,664. That’s just the raw salary, before endorsements and other sweeteners.
Elsewhere, Mark Wedderburn will follow his big brother’s footsteps and become a Nittany Lion. Good deal. He’s a tall tight end right now, who knows what he’ll grow into.
Finally, Black Shoe Diaries is hinting at Kenny Tate committing to Penn State.
12 responses so far ↓
Elno Lewis // November 29, 2007 at 4:34 pm
Don’t matter. UM will still be pounding yous guys.
PSUgirl // November 29, 2007 at 4:55 pm
Okay - what strikes me after reading the salary story is - first, how poorly written it was - one would think that with 5 years, basically, to write the story that the co-contributors could have done a better job - maybe not. second - Joe’s hand looks freakishly big in that picture.
Kapitan // November 29, 2007 at 5:03 pm
RUTS, you have no idea how much I hope you’re wrong. Deep down though, I know you’re right. I’m gonna be sick.
telly // November 29, 2007 at 7:16 pm
since I can’t say it on a FOS message board, can I please use your fascinating yet humble blog to voice my opinion that I think most, if not all, of the “I love Joe so much it hurts, I don’t care how bad the team is, la-la-la, I don’t care how bad they fuck up, la-la-la, Joe forever, he leaves when he wants to leave, fuck what the fans or the university want, la-la-la” posters are annoying twats?
Run Up The Score! // November 29, 2007 at 11:03 pm
Yes. Yes you may.
(You would also be correct.)
FireJayPa // November 30, 2007 at 8:31 am
That’s what some people call “Happy Jacks” or “Kool-Aid drinkers” there telly ….
You’re spot on with your assessment
Chili // November 30, 2007 at 9:32 am
I think 2008 will be the last year of Paterno coaching as we know it. Starting in 2009 he will coach from a metal exoskeleton with his brain in its stomach, not unlike Krang.
speedomike02 // November 30, 2007 at 11:34 am
Honestly though, how many posters are there like that anymore?
I just don’t want this to be a Bobby Knight/Indiana where it ends ugly and JoePa wants nothing to do with Penn State.
telly // November 30, 2007 at 1:17 pm
speedo:
there are a couple… vocal supporters. the dude with the muhammed ali photo- prime example.
As for the Bobby Knight comparison… I’m not sure how much Paterno actually cares about the university. If he actually cared about the university, he’d step down. His remaining as HC is all about his ego, his son, and his money.
speedomike02 // November 30, 2007 at 1:50 pm
Is that on Audibles? I stay away from there for the most part. But TAP isn’t much better these days.
As far as your other point-I think you need to take a breath. You’re talking about a guy who donated $4.5 million to add a major wing to the library. How could you possibly know what his motivations to stay in coaching are? I personally think he should step down, but not for the same reasons as a lot of people.
PSUgirl // November 30, 2007 at 2:52 pm
wow telly - that’s a bit of a stretch to say that Joe Paterno doesn’t care about Penn State - I’m in no way (never have been) a Joe Paterno disciple - and I know that Joe has an arrogance when it comes to Penn Staters - but I’d say that he likes the University well enough.
Ego, maybe - his kid and his coaches - probably - money? not so sure about that one - but I think that Joe believes that he is the best thing for Penn State right now - whether or not we agree with him is a different issue.
If the talking heads came in and said - okay joe - you can stay but we’re cleaning house otherwise (like they did down in Tuscaloosa) - I don’t know if he’d stay. I also doubt that anyone would be “able” to come in and say that.
Tailgate Shogun // November 30, 2007 at 4:29 pm
I’m curious - where does the idea that Joe is insisting that Jay be his successor come from?
He’s said publicly that Jay should go elsewhere if he wants head coaching experience, and other than keeping him around along with some other underperforming coaches (cough, OL, cough)… what has he done to make people think Joe is demanding Jay take the reigns? Joe’s desire to stick around too long (aka, forever)?
I’m in the realist camp: It doesn’t matter what you or I think about the coaching situation; PSU doesn’t care about our opinion. If you twist my arm, I’d prefer Joe to stay than Joe goes. But I’m just curious as to where the notion of this nefarious plan to hand Jr. the job comes from.
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