Joe Paterno is one of the five greatest college football coaches to ever live- that is undeniable. Paterno is also the most beloved college football coach ever. However, he should never be honored by Penn State or any other organization ever again. Joe Paterno, for a long time, was a living legend. His name held reverence in the realm of sports and his name stood for longevity, hard work, and success. But that all changed when the Jerry Sandusky scandal revealed that Joe Paterno only fulfilled his minimal obligations to authorities and that his actions- or, more accurately, his inaction- almost certainly let Sandusky, now a convicted child molester, get away with his crimes more times than was necessary. Because of this fallout, Paterno's statue was removed from campus and his name was taken off of awards and buildings across the country, much to the ire of a segment off his fans who, to this day, believe Paterno had been railroaded.
Recently Penn State decided to honor Paterno during one of it's upcoming home games and I just can't understand why. I'm completely fine admitting Paterno was a great coach because he was, but with all the information we now have, we know that Paterno was objectively not a just a bad person but a horrible person. He put bad publicity for his football program ahead of the welfare and safety of children. He could've warned everyone about Jerry Sandusky when his graduate assistant reported seeing Sandusky act inappropriately in a shower with a child. Instead he chose to only complete his legal obligations and forsake his moral obligations. How can you honor this sort of person who has helped to perpetuate a system where athletes and coaches can get away with any crime because they're good at throwing a ball, shooting a basket, or planning great defensive strategies.
Now, many who staunchly defend Paterno will say he never truly knew what Sandusky was doing and the reports are just conjecture. While that is technically true and we'll never truly know what Paterno knew, it's clear that at the very least he should have asked more questions of what was going on with Sandusky.
At some point, we as people have to take a stand about what's truly important to us and when Joe Paterno had that chance, he chose wrong. He decided that his program was more important than thoroughly investigating and finding out the truth and, for that, I don't think that Penn State should be honoring him. Ignoring his sins the way he ignored Sandusky's is a crime of it's own.
