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View Full Version : Joe Paterno gets it right



gabosaurus
05-25-2007, 12:55 PM
If major colleges placed less emphasis on winning games and making money and more emphasis on education and learning life lessons, we would have more D1 coaches like Joe Paterno. And fewer thugs and hoodlums on the field and in society.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07143/788214-143.stm

Penn State coach Joe Paterno, upset that several of his players were involved in an off-campus fight in early April, is punishing his entire team this fall. Paterno said Monday night at a banquet near Philadelphia that his players will be part of the clean-up crew at Beaver Stadium every Sunday after home games this fall. They also will volunteer their services for Habitat for Humanity in Centre County and the Special Olympics.

Two Penn State players -- Anthony Scirrotto and Chris Baker -- face charges in the alleged April 1 burglary and assault that sent one person to the hospital. Four others had charges against them dropped because of insufficient evidence.

Paterno said he is determined to teach his players a lesson from the incident.

"We're all going to do it, everybody," he said at a news conference before the banquet. "Not just the kids that were involved because we're all in it together. This is a team embarrassment. I wouldn't call it anything much other than that."

Paterno said the players will earn money for their work after each of the team's seven home games, but that they will be required to donate the money to help fund Penn State's club sports. Members of Penn State's club sports teams earn money by cleaning up Beaver Stadium on Sundays in the fall.

"I just thought that, hey, we had 14, 15 kids -- I don't even know how many -- that were involved in something embarrassing, and I think we need to prove to people that we're not a bunch of hoodlums," Paterno said.

Paterno went on to say that some players will be subject to suspensions and demotions.

He also said he was hopeful that Penn State's Office of Judicial Affairs, which can discipline students for their actions on or off campus, has an open mind when deciding its punishment.

"I was more upset with the kids that could have said, 'Hey, come on, knock this off. We don't need this.' I think that bothers me some. I'd be dishonest if I told you otherwise. But a major problem? I don't know," Paterno said in the Philadelphia Inquirer yesterday.

"Maybe we'll learn from it. Sometimes, I think kids don't quite understand what you mean by leadership. These are the circumstances where a couple of strong kids could have said, 'This is ridiculous' because it was. A couple of kids went in there and a couple of punches were thrown. I don't condone it. Our guys were wrong.

"I just hope people don't overreact to it because if it was a bunch of other kids and these weren't football players nobody would know what happened," he said. "I just hope everyone has some responsibility and says, 'Hey, let's look at this without making it a media event.'

"I think there are some things that should be done to a couple of kids. But what? I think I'll leave that to other people. But I know what I'm going to do. The ones I know about are going to have to do some things."

Dilloduck
05-25-2007, 01:01 PM
If major colleges placed less emphasis on winning games and making money and more emphasis on education and learning life lessons, we would have more D1 coaches like Joe Paterno. And fewer thugs and hoodlums on the field and in society

They also wouldn't have jobs. I do like how Coach Joe is handling this tho.

avatar4321
05-25-2007, 01:22 PM
question is why wait till something happens like this to teach the players?