Fans rally for Joe Paterno amid questions

Students greet Penn State coach Joe Paterno, right, as he arrives at his home, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2011, in State College, Pa. / AP Photo

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Coach Joe Paterno is fighting for his job amid "eroding" support from Penn State's board of trustees and a widening sex-abuse scandal and possible cover-up centered on former assistant and onetime heir apparent Jerry Sandusky.

Paterno's regularly scheduled news conference was abruptly canceled Tuesday by a university spokesman who cited "ongoing legal circumstances," a reference to charges announced over the weekend that Sandusky molested eight young boys between 1994 and 2009, and that two PSU administrators who have since resigned failed to notify authorities of a 2002 incident reported by an eyewitness.

Hundreds of fans staged a raucous rally outside Paterno's home Tuesday evening. He appeared briefly, along with some family members, and thanked the crowd for coming, according to CBS 3 in Philadelphia.

Paterno, escorted by his son, Scott, said, "Look, I know you guys have a lot of questions and I was hoping I was going to be able to answer them today, but we'll try to do it as soon as we can. We can't do it today."

Scott said nothing has changed.

"There's been no contact about anything to do with anybody stepping down," said Scott. "That's all we really have at this time."

Scott said there had been no contact with the university other than discussing football.

"I've lived for this place. I've lived for people like you guys and girls," the elder Paterno told the crowd gathered at his home.

"It's hard for me to say how much this means," the 84-year-old coach said.

"As you know, the kids that were the victims, I think we ought to say a prayer for them."

Asked if he was still the coach, Paterno didn't answer but a young woman who stood with her arm around him replied: "Now is not the time."

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Paterno's son, Scott, said his father was disappointed over the decision by PSU President Graham Spanier to cancel the news conference. Addressing reporters outside his parents' house, Scott said Joe was prepared to answer questions about Sandusky — who maintains he is innocent — and further that his father plans to coach not only Saturday's game against Nebraska, but for the long haul.

Earlier in the day, Paterno stepped out of a silver sedan being driven by his wife, Sue, and headed to the team practice. At one corner of the facility, managers hastily put plywood boards over an exposed fence to block photographers' view of the field.

At the spontaneous rally at his house, Paterno held his fists over his head three times and said, "We are ..."

And the crowd replied, "Penn State!"

"We're always going to be Penn State," Paterno said. "I'm proud of you. I've always been proud of you. Beat Nebraska."

Paterno, who earns about $1 million annually from the school, has been head coach for 46 years and part of the Penn State staff for more than six decades, and his old-school values pervade every corner of the program.

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Over that span, the Nittany Lions won two national championships, but unlike many other Division I powerhouses, the program avoided run-ins with the NCAA. The team generates millions of dollars each year in revenues from attendance, TV rights and sponsorships, but it has stubbornly stuck with the basic white-and-blue uniforms that are now among the most recognizable in college football.

All those things have inspired pride in the region and fierce loyalty to Paterno, who is the winningest coach in Division I and one of the most respected in any sport. That lofty status, however, has been the subject of heated arguments in recent days, among students on campus, construction workers on the street and the PSU board of trustees.

A person familiar with the trustees' discussions said support there for Paterno was "eroding," but couldn't gauge whether the board would take action. The same person said Spanier has also lost support ahead of Friday's board meeting, which Gov. Tom Corbett said he plans to attend. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject.

After the rally at Paterno's house, some students headed to the administration building, where they thought some trustees might be meeting.

23 Photos

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Earlier, in a brief conversation with The Associated Press, board Chairman Steve Garban said "we're in sessions" when asked if the trustees were having an emergency meeting.

While praising Spanier's tenure at Penn State, an official of the American Council on Education, said, "The central issue for the board, which is charged with preserving and protecting the institution, is not the rearview mirror."

"It's the institution going forward," added Terry Hartle, senior vice president at the council, the main umbrella organization representing colleges and universities nationally.

Much of the criticism surrounding Paterno has concerned his apparent failure to follow up on a report of the 2002 incident, in which Sandusky allegedly sodomized a 10-year-old boy in the showers at the team's football complex. The eyewitness, Mike McQueary, is currently receivers coach for the team but was a graduate assistant at the time.

McQueary told Paterno what he saw the next day, and the coach notified the athletic director, Tim Curley, and the vice president, Glenn Schultz, who in turn notified Spanier. Curley and Schultz have been charged with perjury and failure to report the incident to authorities, as required by state law.

Both men, as well as Paterno, testified that they were told that Sandusky behaved inappropriately in that 2002 incident, but not to the extent of McQueary's graphic account to a state grand jury.

The same grand jury decided the testimony from Curley and Schultz, whose job at the time also gave him oversight of the campus police, were not believable. Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly said Paterno is not a target of the investigation, although the state police commissioner has chastised him and other Penn State officials for not doing enough to try to stop the suspected abuse.

Sandusky, 67, spent three decades on the Penn State staff before retiring in 1999, but continued to use school and athletic facilities — where prosecutors allege he molested several of the boys — as recently as two weeks ago. He often held football camps for youths on PSU satellite campuses and maintained an office at the Nittany Lions' complex on the main campus.

Sandusky began working with at-risk youths after founding The Second Mile charity in 1977. It now raises and spends several million dollars each year for its programs. According to Internal Revenue Service documents, the foundation last paid Sandusky in 2007, when he received $57,000 as a consultant. He publicly severed ties in 2010.

Paterno is listed on The Second Mile's website as a current member of its honorary board of directors, a group that includes business executives, golfing great Arnold Palmer and several NFL Hall of Famers and coaches, including retired Pittsburgh Steelers stars Jack Ham and Franco Harris.

Authorities have said that Paterno is not a target of the investigation.

Meanwhile, another potential victim has contacted authorities.

The man, now an adult, contacted the department on Sunday after seeing media accounts of Sandusky's arrest, Lt. David Young at the Montoursville station said. Investigators took a statement from him and forwarded it to the Rockview station for officers there to pursue, Young said.

U.S. Rep. Patrick Meehan of Pennsylvania said Tuesday he's asked Education Secretary Arne Duncan to look into whether the university violated the Clery Act, which requires schools to publish an annual report of all criminal offenses that are reported to campus security or local police.

[Noval53]

What kind of fools witness child rape and fail to call the police? What kind of morons and cowards don't immediately take action and rescue or protect children from pedofiles? Absolutely inexcusable...

[longtree-2009]

seems like paterno is an accessory to pedophilia even if he himself did not participate in the actual molestations. paterno never called police with what he knew at anytime. perhaps paterno himself is something of a closet pedophile, not an active participant but one who hangs with that crowd like a groupie. why paterno still has supporters remains a mystery. could it be general approval of pedophilia in some strange manner?

[lami987]

Many of us believe a good coach can do no wrong. To them I'd say wake up. No body is above the law. No banker, no coach, no university president, no body. Every body has the responsibility to make things right and fair. Tom Osborne, ex football coach of Nebraska just arranged to excuse a volley ball player after she was involved in a hit and run accident while her license was suspended. On top of that she got like six traffic violations, probably due to speeding, in the last few years. In Osborne's confused mind he believes he has done a great favor for Nebraska. If he is worthy of anything at all he should have intervened after she got the very first traffic violation. So coaches can be more crooked because sport fans worship them. Beware obesity disease is spreading in America so don't watch too much sport on TV.

[rwsmith29456]

From the Grand Jury report, Paterno informed his superiors of one eyewitness report. The people that were responsible for reporting the incidents to the police or child welfare department were Tim Curley and Gary Schultz. Both of them actually made false testimony under oath concerning knowledge of Sandusky's crimes. There were eight victims in all. If you want to hang somebody, hang those two. Paterno did his job. You could argue that he should have made more noise, but that is a matter of degree.

[freeamerica31]

rwsmith29456 you can argue with yourself all you want about matters of degree but the fact is he allowed a sexual predator on his staff even after he knew for 11 yrs. In most normal environments people call that irresponsibility. Think you might jump on board.

I like Coach Paterno but this is one error of judgement on his part he can not get around. People need to know their children are in a safe environment at Penn State and his actions don't say much toward that endeavor.

People need to grow up and realize this is not about a football game but a real heinous crime and popularity isn't going to get you out of the fact he showed poor leadership and didn't do his moral responsibility for the University or the community.

[tsigili]

Sports mania is no excuse for not reporting sex offenders to proper authorities. One level up is hardly adequate, when you know the incident is likely to be covered up.

[Truth_Tracker]

True college football aficionados treasure certain basic precepts of the game. They revere the value of "tenacious pursuit" which is relentless and never stops until the whistle is blown. They cherish player tenacity that "refuses to give-up or surrender," the player who fights all-out to the last bullet. They embrace and worship a "win at all costs" mindset that says "show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser." They respect and value a "keen eye" and a vigilant, brilliant strategist mind that preceives everything happening on the field, with the adroit ability to instantly "anticipate" an opponent's next move, coupled with the adept ability to swiftly vanquish the opponent's objective and trounce it's attempted execution.

What bitter, bitter irony that every single one of these highly trained skills should be so abhorently absent when this innocent 10 year old boy so desperately needed them for his protection. What brutal irony that such adamant fan support should materialize for this coach, in the wake of a young child's rape, where neither the school nor the coach supported that little victim or protected him.

[wrangler73]

Incredibly well said. Why wasn't there a "never give up" tenacious, relentless, determined pursuit of justice for this little boy once Paterno and Penn State authorities knew what had happened? What good are such sports motivational skills if they only manifest on the football field, where it's most certainly is NOT important? This little boy never got the help, guidance and support he so desperately needed after the horrendous trauma he endured -- all alone - by himself. But coach Paterno - he's swamped up the wazoo with supporters. And because this little boy got no support from Paterno or Peen State officials, that Penn State defensive coach was able to victimize many, many other little children. But coach Paterno - he's besieged with torrents of supporters. How does reality become so inverted for so many people?

[involved_indi]

Joe was the head coach. He is as responsible as Tressel was at Ohio State, KIffin was at SC etc.. etc... etc... If he has the noble character that everyone says he has he won't have to be asked to resign, he will do it on his own.

[nearl451]

His career is over. Error of omission. 20 years Sandusky and Joe PA were together.

[bp1212]

Joe Paterno is an outstanding and upstanding person. You have no clue what you're talking about. How about you and the rest of the world wait for the investigation which is taking place to place the blame where it belongs rather than jump on the bandwagon to slander and disgrace someone who has done more good for Penn State University and the lives and careers of thousands of athletes in 60 years than pretty much anyone else has ever done...Jumping to assumptions based on preliminary reports is just not fair. This looks more and more like a witch hunt than a quest for justice.

[freeamerica31]

Coach Paterno is an outstanding person and has been for as long as I can remember. This is not about his ability as a coach and long term mentor.

This is about a failure in the system at Penn State of which he is closely assimulated. People are not just talking about Coach Paterno but the whole University's failure of these children sexually assaulted.

Coach Joe's part is a failure to lead like all the others involved. When children are involved, there is no limit to how far you go to assure parents their children will be safe on your campus. There is no line you won't cross to safeguard those children. You don't get second chances to reassure parents.

This is a absolute failure in leadership and character of all involved in the chain of command at Penn State and Coach Paterno is part of that chain. This is not about football but a real heinous crime against children. You don't get a pass because you're popular amongst the student body or local population.

Grow a conscious!

[icmytrain]

Ole Joe knew that Sandusky raped a 10 year old boy in HIS football showers. Read the grand jury report for your self:

http://cbschicago.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sandusky-grand-jury-presentment.pdf

How many other innocent boys were raped in the YEARS that passed after Joe had no dowbts about this monster. He knew full well nothing was done!!!

[Reese4575]

My God, It's not what he did, it's what he didn't do. When he saw what was not being done, he didn't contact the proper authorities. He is just as guilty for not following through with getting this guy arrested. Look at his position and you believe he did all he could to stop this guy? No wonder there are so many pedophiles out there getting away with hurting these young children.Chastise Paterno, don't pat him on the back for letting it go on.My God people, wake up, it is what it is.