What to think of Joe Paterno?
If you visit Penn State, you see his name on the library. An ice cream honors him at the famous creamery. His statue outside the stadium is a popular stop for pictures.
It is true that no football coach has ever before (or likely ever will) meant so much to his school. But it is also true that Paterno’s failure to act when it really mattered has badly stained Penn State – and his own legacy.
Perhaps Paterno reached a point where he thought he was bigger than the institution. No need to be accountable, no one was powerful enough to enforce it. Sadly, Penn State allowed Paterno’s sense of “I can do no wrong” to prevail.
In his statement Wednesday, Paterno said he wished he had the benefit of hindsight. “I wish I had done more,” he said.
In fact, he had the past nine years to do more, but did not.
This will be remembered as a story of someone who allegedly did horrible acts (Jerry Sandusky) and powerful people (Paterno, Tim Curley, Gary Shultz, Graham Spanier) that made horrible judgments. It is a story about lying, and betrayal, and shattered trust. It is a story of taking a proud institution to its knees in disgrace.
And in the face of all of that, Paterno’s regret falls woefully short.
