Penn State Nation Struggles To Understand Sandusky's Actions, JoePa's Dismissal

At one end of State College a cinder block reportedly was thrown through a window of Jerry Sandusky’s home late Friday. At the other end of town hours earlier, a "tweeter" describes college students walking up to Coach Joe Paterno’s home and raking the leaves to show the coach their love and support. 

In the window of the Old Main Frame Shop & Gallery on College Ave., my family and I see a display of photos and memorabilia related to Paterno and the team. A simple note in the window brings tears to our eyes: around the famous lion logo, it says simply, “Thank you, Joe!!.”  Fliers are posted around town, asking alums to contribute to an effort to raise $500,000 for abuse victims; by game's end on Saturday they are well on their way to realizing this goal. 

Anger At The Press and Governor

Elsewhere in the normally quiet town that swells to a city on game weekends, we are startled to see an endless array of TV network vans, satellite dishes lining both sides of College Avenue: ABC, NBC, CBS, ESPN, CNN from multiple affiliates. We hope they are there to broadcast the student organized candlelight vigil that an hour later would bring thousands, one estimate puts it at 10,000, members of the PSU community to the lawn in front of Old Main. Students scurry by, holding blue and white candles, often holding hands, eager to do the “right thing,” to show their respect for Sandusky’s young victims and for victims everywhere.

But by Saturday it is apparent from the skimpy TV coverage of the vigil that the newscasters must have been hoping for a repeat of the previous night’s “riot,” that resulted in an overturned TV van. Some local residents say that camera footage of the "riot" includes members of the press encouraging students to "act out" for the cameras. Talking with students who work in the hotels and restaurants, they are clearly angry at the media; they believe that the reporters’ decision to focus on Paterno is what brought about his firing. They are angry that Paterno has been made into a villain while the real bad guys – Sandusky, and maybe McQuery, who witnessed one abusive event – seem almost forgotten. 

Governor Corbett isn’t popular either: with little urging, a student employee at a restaurant describes a day made chaotic by his arrival, “as if he were the president or something.” Many believe Paterno’s firing resulted from pressure applied by Corbett, who will now make the Sunday talk show rounds; they see him as attempting to advance his political career at the expense of Paterno and Penn State. 

Rampant Rumors Create Fear and Confusion

Rumors swirl around town about McQueary: he is still coaching; he isn’t; he is on admin leave because of threats made against him; he is in protective custody; he has left town. Oddly ignored for days, McQueary’s actions are now a focus of the controversy. “How could he have witnessed the rape of a child and not stopped it?” “Why didn’t he grab the kid and call the police?” “What did he tell Paterno?” people ask.

McQueary is not the only subject of rumors and fears. Some say they heard “Peachy Paterno” will be dropped from The Creamery’s ice cream offerings. Others say they heard “Paternoville,” the tent city that springs up outside the stadium each game weekend, will be renamed. The larger than life bronze statue of Paterno outside the stadium is being guarded for fear it will be vandalized; people are bringing flowers to it.  A sign has been hung that says, “God bless Joe Paterno,” and people are invited to sign it for JoePa.  State police cars cruise everywhere. A family friend serves on the board of “Second Mile,” the foundation that Sandusky created after leaving Penn State. It is through "Second Mile" that Sandusky found his young victims. She fears she can be sued.

Later Friday night in the lobby of the Nittany Lion Inn, tired looking reporters, some evicted from hotel rooms as the weekend’s sell-out crowd arrives to replace them, sit with their laptops. Nearby, one PSU fan seems oblivious as he sips coffee from his mug that says, “400: The Paterno Way.” The slogan refers to Paterno’s 400th win last season; “The Paterno Way” means “with honor.”

Outside the hotel, a drunken man in a Nebraska jacket makes comments littered with obscenities; he seems hopeful for a chance to fight with Penn State fans. Other Nebraska fans nearby try to calm him down:  “They’ve had a tough week here; they lost their coach; they’re trying to deal with a lot, you know,” a woman says in calming tones. We step away.

Emotions Characterize the Game

Varied emotions coalesce at the game. No one can forget that JoePa is missing; everyone is determined to do him and Penn State proud. From the team’s arrival at the stadium where they are greeted by an army of cheering fans and later, during pregame, when the trademark PSU formation made on the field by the Blue Band is frozen in place as fans observe a moment of silence in respect to the abuse victims, to the singing of the alma mater, swaying and crying with arms around one another in the stands, the sea of blue is deafening and decisive in its pride and loyalty.  Although many are visibly crying, everyone is determined to contribute to a tidal wave of love and loyalty that will carry the team to a much-needed victory; as the signs in the crowd say, “This one is for JoePa.”

In the end, despite a late game comeback by PSU, Nebraska chalks up a 17-14 victory, but the Lion nation wins its own victory, a victory of spirit, as the 107,000 fans remain in the stands repetitively screaming, “We are Penn State.”

Hours later, we emerged from The Tavern, State College's best known restaurant. Tired from an emotional few days and a good dinner, it seemed almost as if things had somehow returned to normal-- until we saw a few lingering news vans and five police officers in riot gear sitting on horses, hoping and not hoping, respectively, for another riot.

Final Reflections

Earlier Friday, when our car joined the merging caravan snaking down the last mountain that serves as the gateway to Happy Valley, I wasn’t sure what to expect from what should have been a normal final game in Penn State’s home season.  With four PSU diplomas in my family, like others in the vast Penn State network, we were devastated by the week’s events that began with the shocking charges against Jerry Sandusky and culminated with the unceremonious firing of head coach Joe Paterno.

Sunday we will leave, unlikely to return until next season. It will never be the same. When I look at JoePa, I see my father who passed away when he was 83. Like my father, like all of us, Joe is a good guy and a product of the ways in which things were done among his generation. When McQueary told JoePa whatever he did about what he witnessed between Sandusky and the still unknown victim, Joe did what he thought he ought to do: not an eye witness himself, he reported it to his boss, athletic director Tim Curley, and naively believed those in charge would take it from there. In Joe’s shoes, my dad would have done likewise; for people of these older generations, it was the right thing to do.