Joe Paterno resigned, then was fired by Penn State 10 years ago today: ‘I wish I had done more’

The firing of Penn State University football coach Joe Paterno on Nov. 9, 2011, was shocking, sudden and done over the phone.

The Board of Trustees fired the longtime coach along with university President Graham Spanier in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal.

Paterno had announced he would resign. Twelve hours later he was fired.

Just days before, Sandusky had been charged with sexually abusing eight boys. He was convicted in 2012.

Sandusky is serving a 30- to 60-year state prison sentence after being convicted of 45 counts of abuse involving 10 boys, including attacks that occurred on campus property.

Patriot-News reporter Bob Flounders wrote on Nov. 10, 2011:

“It was a shocking ending to the most horrific week in the history of Penn State and its football program, once thought of as the one place where everything is done the right way.

“Wednesday night, head coach Joe Paterno was ousted by the university’s board of trustees. The move came roughly 12 hours after Paterno’s own announcement that he would resign at the end of this season in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal.

“The board of trustees abruptly cut ties with the legendary coach and appointed the team’s defensive coordinator, Tom Bradley, interim head coach. Bradley will lead the 8-1 Nittany Lions as they face Nebraska on Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

“It was a run for the record books. Just two weeks ago, Paterno became college football’s all-time leader in Division I victories with his 409th win.

And now the run is suddenly, stunningly over.”

The 409th win came on Oct. 29, 2011, on a snowy and cold day at Beaver Stadium.

After the trustees news conference, Paterno said, “Right now, I’m not the football coach and that’s something I have to get used to.”

Penn State students erupted into the streets to protest Paterno’s firing. Cars were damaged. Windows were broken. A TV news van was overturned.

Paterno was not charged with doing anything wrong.

“But some said Paterno failed in his moral obligation to notify authorities after a graduate assistant told him he saw Sandusky with a young boy in a shower in 2002. Public condemnation for Paterno’s role in the scandal grew as the days progressed,” Flounders wrote.

Paterno said, “This is a tragedy. It is one of the great sorrows of my life. With the benefit of hindsight, I wish I had done more.”

Current and former players reacted with sadness and disbelief.

Drew Astorino: “It’s a very tough situation to deal with. I think myself and the team are handling it well. First of all, we feel horrible for the victims and those families, and we think about them all of the time.

“At the same time,” Astorino said, “the 125 guys on this team didn’t have anything to do with 10 years ago. We’ve been dealing with it just by leaning on each other. We have a great bond between 125 players, and that’s what we’ve been doing.”

Adam Taliaferro: “You hurt for everybody, and you hope everybody finds peace at the end of the day. For me, it’s just family up there, everyone in the program. You hate to see anyone go through something like that.

“I know coach Paterno and Mrs. Paterno and Jay and Scott and the rest of the family. I consider those people to be part of my extended family. Coach Paterno is Penn State, and he’ll always be Penn State. He’s a person that I’ll always have a great amount of respect for what he did for me. He went far beyond what any football coach would ever do for a player. This is a guy who I’ll always just cherish.”

Chima Okoli: “I can’t really put it into words, but if I was, I came here a boy, and I left a man. And that’s all due to Joe Paterno.

“You’re in the presence of someone who really embodies and exemplifies dedication and perseverance. His last words were definitely ones we hung on. The last words of that meeting were - we’re Penn State football players and we’re going to forever be linked. We’re a family.”

Paterno was diagnosed with lung cancer shortly after he was fired. The Nittany Lions played their first game without him on Nov. 12.

Paterno died on Jan. 22, 2012, at the age of 85, from complications of lung cancer.