Joe Paterno

Joseph Vincent Paterno (born December 21, 1926 in Brooklyn, New York), nicknamed Joe Pa, has been the head coach of The Pennsylvania State University's college football team since 1966.

Records and controversies

Still coaching at age 78, Paterno has completed his 55th season at the University as an assistant or head coach, the record for any football coach at any university. Following the 2004 season, Paterno had amassed 343 wins, second in the NCAA's "Winningest All-Time Division I-A Coaches" category to Florida State coach Bobby Bowden's 351 wins. Some Joe Pa loyalists argue that 31 of Bowden's wins should not be counted as they came while Bowden was the head coach at Howard College, which is now Samford University, a Division I-AA football program. However, during Bowden's tenure at Howard, there were no distinctions between Division I and Division I-AA in college football. Bowden is credited with the record because the NCAA rule states that to be eligible for the record one needs 10 years at a Division I-A school, at which point all wins at any four-year school are counted toward the career total. Paterno's 20 wins in bowl games give him the all-time lead among Division I-A coaches; Bowden is second with 19 bowl wins. Despite the comparisons of on the field performances, and bickering amongst college football fans, Paterno and Bowden are actually friends, often spending time together when they attend coaches' conventions.

Related Topics:
NCAA - Division I-A - Florida State - Bobby Bowden - Samford University - Division I-AA

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In 2002, Paterno chased down an official in a dead sprint following a 42-35 overtime home loss to Iowa. In the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, wide receiver Tony Johnson made a clutch catch, which would have given Penn State a first down and put them in range for a game winning field goal. Although Johnson was ruled out of bounds, replays clearly showed that Johnson had both feet in bounds and the catch would have been complete even under NFL rules. Paterno, and the 108,247 fans sitting in Beaver Stadium, saw both of Johnson's feet stay in bounds on the stadium's big-screen TV's. To add insult to injury, Penn State had rallied from a 35-13 deficit with 9 minutes left in the game to tie the score at 35, and were driving for the game winning score when the officials blew the call. The image of the septagenarian coaching legend running down the official was shown repeatedly on sports highlight shows throughout the 2002 season, as many found it both amusing and amazing that a man his age could run so fast.

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In 2003, the Big Ten Conference became the first college football conference to adopt a form of instant replay. The blown call in the Iowa game is often cited as a catalyst for the adoption of instant replay.

Related Topics:
Big Ten Conference - Instant replay

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Because some of his more recent teams have been less successful than those coached up through the 1990's, Paterno has endured a controversial period with the media and many disgruntled fans and alumni calling for his retirement. Paterno has rebuffed all of this and has stated he will fulfill his contract which expires in 2006. Paterno announced in a speech in Pittsburgh on May 12, 2005 that he will consider retirement if the 2005 football team has a disappointing season. "If we don't win some games, I've got to get my rear end out of here", Paterno said in a speech at the Duquesne Club. "Simple as that".

Related Topics:
Pittsburgh - May 12 - 2005

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