Joe Paterno Big Ten Media Day Transcript

Check out NittanyWhiteout and LinebackerU for in-depth coverage. I’ve got to work while it’s all going down so they’ll be your best bet for updates as the day goes along.

Something along the lines of–“Are you going to die before you stop coaching?”

Is that wishful thinking? (big laughs) I really don’t think about that.  I just–I’m enjoying it, I like to coach. Earlier in the year was nothing really serious, but they made a big deal out of it.  I feel really good and as long as I enjoy it, I’ll continue to coach, unless I don’t think I can do a good job or anybody else feels I can’t too a good job—we’ll talk about that later—but right now I have no plans whether I’ll go another year, 2 years, 5 years, whatever. I just hope we can have a decent year this year.

You had intestinal issues this last spring, is that right?

I won’t get into that.  It was a little bit below the intestines, so…

You’re on the road less for recruiting. At what point does it hurt?

I don’t know that it’s hurt recruiting, to be frank with you. We’re still in the middle of trying to get a few key people which would make a difference. Our problem with numbers, and that’s what people look at, is that we don’t have that many scholarships available.  As you look at our roster you’ll find out that we have a lot of walk on kids, but as far as the scholarship kids, the kids that are on grant-in-aid, we don’t lose a lot of kids, so we really couldn’t go out and get 18, 19, 20 kids this year.  We just want to go out there and get people to fill in where we need them and hopefully make ourselves a little bit better.  I think we’re doing all right, I really do.

What are your thoughts on Nebraska joining the Big Ten?

We have played Nebraska before we got in the Big Ten and had some great, great games. I have tremendous amount of respect for not only Tom but the University of Nebraska. So, I think it’s a really good addition to Big Ten and we’re looking forward to their being part of it. I coached, actually, as an assistant before even Bob Devaney or Tom did–Bill Glassford was coaching there, they beat us out there and they had a great running back named Billy Reynolds I think his name was, and he was one of the best backs in the country, that’s going back to 1950, sometime around there.  We’ve got a good relationship with them so its good to see them in the Big Ten and I’m looking forward to spending a little time with Tom, especially since he’s here.  Maybe we’ll have a chance to visit in a little bit.

Do you remain hopeful that the Big Ten will add a couple more teams from the east coast?

Well I could get up here and have some fun with Commissioner Delaney and tell him exactly where we ought to go–after all, I have all the answers (Joe laughs). I think, really, the Nebraska think was a real good move for the Big Ten, and whether we need a couple more schools or not, I’ll leave that in the hands of jim and the people that are going around talking to other people, doing some investigating.  Obviously, if we decide it’s in the best interests of the Big Ten, I would hope we would be looking at a few schools maybe in the east. Certainly that would be a good move for us, it would help us in the recruiting in the television, all those kinds of things, those are the pluses that you get when you expand as we have with Nebraska. But I think that’s up to some other people right now.

Do you expect to have to change you prepartion for fall camp, given your health, and do you expect to be on the sidelines for every game?

What did Mark Twain say? The rumor of my death has been overexaggerated? I forget, I used to know a little bit more. I really didn’t lose any time, as I said, the problem I had was not losing control over some things. I had to be careful that I wouldn’t get in a position where I would embarrass myself. But as far as looking at tapes and talking to kids, and getting ready for different things there was really no difference except I couldn’t make as many public appearances as I have, because I could’ve been standing up here and then all of a sudden have to leave.  Nobody, obviously, would want to be in that situation.  i don’t see it being any different, I hope I’m ready to go, I think I am. I’ve done my homework.

The September 11^th game against Alabama—how do you feel about that game?

Playing Alabama at Alabama? We’ve been down there a couple times, had a little luck down there when we’ve played them in season. Obviously every year is different and this year they’re a good team, if not the best team out there then I don’t know. It’s a good game early, I’ve got a young team, and obviously we’ve got some growing up to do. Going down there and playing defending national champions on the road before very hostile crowd will be a good experience and we’ll be a better team for it. We have to open up with Youngstown, and I know people will make some remarks, but it’s still a tough game when you’ve got a young team, and a quarterback who hasn’t played much football, as we have. It’s going to  be interesting, and hopefully we’ll be able to play well and learn from it.

What’s your opinion as far as divisions go?

Oh boy, obviously when Nebraska got in the Big Ten and we started talking about a championship game, I think they’re talking maybe that they’re trying to have that championship game as early as a year or two from now. So you start saying who’s going to be here, you’ve got some traditional things, some things like that. I’m just glad I don’t have to make that decision.  I think there are a lot of different combinations that would be good, which could put us in a position where we could have a team that would be champions of the Big Ten and be in a position to go on and be national champs. But what the makeup of each division—I haven’t had a chance to give that much thought.  There, again, we’re actually the new kids on the block in this thing and there’s some old rivalries, some traditions  there’s a lot of things that have to go into this. I have a lot of confidence that the people who have to make the decision will put in the thought it takes to do a good job and come up with something good for Big Ten.

Coaches are getting younger and younger—how do you communicate with young kids on campus? Do you have much one-on-one, or do you rely on the assistants to do that?

Without getting into a recruiting spiel, I think it’s easier to do in a town like State College. I’m literally a fifteen minute from the office, I’m three blocks away from the campus, I’m right down from one of the town parks, kids walk by my house every day and I horse around with them a little bit. I try to stay active in the affairs, my wife has been very active in doing a lot of different things at the university, I’m around young people all the time, so I horse around with them, have a couple laughs, have some fun with them and the whole bit. Hopefully that keeps you young, so I don’t look at it quite that way. I think your point about coaches getting younger is probably true, but I don’t think that’s necessarily because the coaches want to be that, I think that’s because people have had too much to say about who the coach is–trustees and something like that people who give you money.  When I first started to coach as a head coach, and I still do, when I go around talking to people about money, I say “I want your money, but not your two cents.” I still try to stick by that but that’s what’s happened with some young coaches, there’s going to be a money raise and unfortunately there are people who want to have their two cents involved in the thing, so there’s been a lot of turnover with some of the really good young coaches.

I wonder if you’ve considered what it will mean to win #400 and passing Eddie Robinson, I know you knew him well, what would he be saying right now?

I really haven’t thought about it. Eddie Robinson was one of the great people I’ve known in coaching. Eddie and I went down in Washington a couple times and talked to some government people about some problems we had and you know, I always had felt that the African American such as Jake Gaither and Eddie and some other guys had never quite gotten the recognition, or, obviously the financial rewards so many of us had got out of this. So the Eddie part of it I’ve thought some of. As far as, you know…when I’m down and I’m looking up, they’re going to put 399 on top of me or they’re going to put 401…who the hell cares. I won’t know.

Are you optimistic that they will ask you about your successor?

I think they would, I would hope they’d sit down with me. I don’t expect to name it, if I decide to get out of coaching whenever it may be, I would hope when they start looking at somebody to succeed  me, somebody to be head coach if they did nothing but just throw something out, “Tey we’re thinking about so and so” and give me an opportunity to say “Well, I think that’s a good choice,” or “Hey you better take a look at this,” or “I don’t think he’s the best guy, have you taken a look at this guy.” I would hope there would be some kind of dialogue but there’s no commitment.