Paterno’s legacy should stay intact

The recent child molestation scandal at Penn State has rocked college sports to its core. Not only has it greatly taken the innocence of young boys and greatly affected their lives, but it also showed that college sports' methodology needs to be adjusted. The backlash from the firing of legendary head coach Joe Paterno exhibited that college football fans live and die with their programs.

The 84-year-old beloved JoePa was fired for something out of his control. Former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, who retired in 1999, was accused of touching young boys in a Penn State locker room shower. Students rioted in the streets of State College, Pa. showing their displeasure on the school's decision to fire JoePa.

One incident involved a 10-year-old boy allegedly raped by Sandusky in a locker room shower. Current assistant coach Mike McQueary, then a graduate assistant, witnessed the alleged attack and told Paterno in 2002. Paterno then informed his higher up, the athletic director, of the incident. The athletic director and leaders of the school should have reported this to the police. Nevertheless, Paterno and his superiors were fired. Paterno, who announced that he would retire at the end of the season, was immediately fired on Nov. 9.

This is not the way anyone imagined Paterno going out. The winningest coach in Division 1 football history, with 409 wins and two national championships, has built Penn State football into one of the best collegiate sports programs in the nation. He has given millions of dollars back to the school and was one of the "good guys" left within the corrupt world of college athletics. Paterno did not allow boosters to buy his players or cover up their deals with tattoo artists for jerseys. Yes, he should have done more to make sure the police were alerted as soon as possible, but to have his legacy forever tainted due to one of his former staff destroying innocent young boys' lives is undeserving of Paterno's golden career.

In a world lacking any type of hero/father figure, Paterno was one of the closest things we, as sports fans, had. Pennsylvania senators took back honors that Paterno had been nominated for, such as the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Big Ten Conference also has decided to take his name off their championship trophy. I believe this to be overblown for Paterno, who did everything to his legal obligations on reporting the incidents he was aware of.

In a recent statement, Paterno's son, Scott Paterno, announced that JoePa was diagnosed with treatable lung cancer last weekend. I have no doubt that Paterno will beat the cancer, but nothing can erase the harm done to the numerous boys hurt by his assistant. I just hope that Paterno's legacy is remembered for being the greatest and classiest coach to ever roam the sidelines and not for his assistant's sick abuse of power.