College football is by far one of the most watched sports in the nation. And it brings the current students and past alumni of institutions together, cheering on their team front and center in the stands or in the comfort of their homes and local bars. Sports fanatics stand behind their teams through wins and losses. But there is a point when the actions of those who run the teams stem far beyond what happens on the gridiron.
Legendary Penn State head football coach Joe Paterno’s era has finally come to an end. And it came just shy of his retirement. On Wednesday, the Board of Trustees at the university fired 84 year old coach for his knowledge of his former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky sexual abusing young males.
His response to not saying anything about this despicable act:
“I Wish I Had Done More”
You think Joe? With all this power that Joe Paterno had at that school, couldn’t he have spoken up and said something? If he had of let his moral instincts kick in and exposed that coach for the true pervert he was, that man would gotten caught a long time ago. But for the sake of the program, he remained silent. And his unspoken words have potentially scarred the lives of these young men.
To no surprise, not everybody felt that the dismissal of JoePa was necessary.
Turning on the television this morning and what did you see? Hundreds of students with picket signs reading “We Love Joe” and “Please Don’t Go Joe”. Broken car windows and raging emotions were the result of the gathering, the want for Paterno to stay and finish out his last games with the Nittany Lions.
I understand the love of winning but I hope that these students see the severity of what is going on here. Paterno didn’t get fired for something petty. We are talking about a man who knew that a member of his coaching staff was molesting innocent young boys, engaging in sexual acts with them. That is a criminal act, one in which was brushed off for several years too many.
Words have been spoken and some of them I can’t even believe people let leave their mouths. One comment in particular was to the tune of football being to blame for this all taking place.
So tell me, what the hell does this pervert’s actions have to do with the game of football?
“Man, you have got to be kidding me. All of these people are walking around here talking about all the great things that JoePa did while he was at Penn State but they are saying little about the fact that he knew this BS was going on and didn’t bother to say anything at all about it. But the point is that it has nothing to do with the game of football, period”
-Bryan S.
Age: 31
Marion, SC
“Joe Paterno ought to be ashamed of himself. How could you look in the mirror everyday and call yourself a man of morals having the knowledge of this situation? There is no way that I would know something like this was going on within my program and not do anything about it. And I’m sure other people on his staff knew about what was going on too and they should be held just as responsible”
-Janaya L.
Age: 21
Port Arthur, TX
“I’m not surprised at all that people are speaking more about JoePa’s accomplishments than about the fact that he literally turned his back on a group of innocent children. That’s how some college programs roll, rant and rave about the good and try to conceal the bad. It’s funny to me how Michael Vick is still being dragged threw the mud for his knowledge of dog fighting taking place on his property, which he served time in jail for but didn’t JoePa turn his back on eight kids who are getting sexually abused by one of his coaches? And all we can talk about his how great of a coach he was. Help me understand this please”
-Marcus W.
Age: 19
Jackson, MS
“Imagine if one of those boys was your child. How would you feel about JoePa then? Would you be parading around, talking about this man’s 409 wins? I don’t think you would. I know the parents of these boys are so hurt by what has happened to their children. I don’t know how I would be able to handle that. And to those who say that football itself is to blame, give me a reason why because I don’t see one”
-Ashlee D.
Age: 28
Brooklyn, NY
“I played football all through high school and college. And I’m here to say that people can not blame a sport for someone doing something like this. Sandusky has his own personal issues and unfortunately they are a reflection of the athletic program that he was associated with. So to bash football as a whole to me is wrong. But to fire Joe Paterno was the right thing to do”
-Marshall R.
Age: 32
Miami, FL
ANYBODY, and I do mean ANYBODY, can commit a demoralizing, despicable act like that so let’s not blame this on the sport itself because it has absolutely nothing to do with that.
It’s not about the power of the pigskin so let’s not go bashing other football programs for the shortcomings of another. It’s about the pervert who committed these acts that is the culprit in this situation and those who knew about it, along with a huge lack of moral responsibility to top it all off. Most importantly, it’s about the children. It’s about what they are suffering from, physically, mentally and emotionally.
So will Penn State ever live this down? Probably.
Will Michael Vick ever live what he did down? Probably Not.
Marinate on that…