Penn State students stood outside Joe Paterno’s home and shouted, “We love JoePa.”
But will the support of a few diehards be enough to save the coach’s job?
It’s looking more and more like it won’t.
Pressure continued to mount yesterday for Paterno to retire as head football coach amid a sex scandal involving former top assistant Jerry Sandusky. The 84-year-old Paterno — an icon in central Pennsylvania — missed his first chance to publicly address questions regarding the scandal when a scheduled news conference was abruptly canceled by university officials.
But that didn’t stop a media horde from swarming Paterno on his way to practice.
“I know you guys have a lot of questions. We’ll try to do it as soon as we can,” Paterno said.
The New York Times reported that Paterno’s 45-year tenure as Penn State coach could end in days or weeks, citing people briefed on conversations among top officials.
Some members of the board of trustees are pushing for an independent investigation before making any decisions, a source told Reuters.
His son, Scott, said that his father hasn’t been asked to step down at this time. In fact, he expects to see him on the sideline this Saturday, when Penn State hosts Nebraska.
Under pressure
The Patriot-News, in Harrisburg, published a full, front-page editorial in Tuesday’s edition:
In it, the editorial board stated, “There are the obligations we all have to uphold the law. There are then the obligations we all have to do what is right.”
“As for Joe Paterno, the face of Penn State and the man who has pushed for excellence on the football field and for the entire university, this must be his last season. His contract should not be extended.”
