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A career marked with distinction, glorious accomplishments and immeasurable contributions to The Pennsylvania State University, added another compelling chapter during the 2008 campaign. Joe Paterno banded together a squad of highly-motivated and dedicated student-athletes and coaches into another championship squad. A team possessing outstanding work-ethic, commitment and senior leadership delivered Penn State's second Big Ten title and Bowl Championship Series berth in the past four seasons. Resiliency would certainly be a keyword for Paterno and his squad in 2008. Injuries and attrition depleted the defensive front early in the season, but the unit firmly held its ground to remain among the nation's best. Trailing rival Ohio State in the fourth quarter, the visiting Nittany Lions made a momentum-swinging play and went on to score the game's final 10 points to post a hard-fought victory. Paterno also was resilient, as he fought through a hip injury that occurred two days before the 2008 season opener, displaying toughness and fortitude to his squad when in obvious pain. The day after the Big Ten-clinching win over Michigan State, Paterno had successful hip replacement surgery and led the Nittany Lions during their preparations for the Rose Bowl clash with Southern California. Paterno was selected the 2008 Big Ten Dave McClain Coach of the Year, winning the honor for the third time, second only to Bo Schembechler's four selections in the award's history. He also was a finalist for three national Coach of the Year honors: the Eddie Robinson Award (FWAA), Liberty Mutual and George Munger (Maxwell Football Club). In December 2008, Paterno agreed to an extension through the 2011 season. Entering his 60th season as a member of the Penn State coaching staff, Paterno is not fond of looking back, but it has been a memorable period for the legendary mentor. In December 2007, he was inducted into the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame. The five-time National Coach of the Year was selected for induction in 2006, and was set to join two more legendary coaches - Bobby Bowden and John Gagliardi - as the first active coaches or players to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Coach Paterno's induction, though, was deferred until 2007, as the injuries he sustained during a sideline collision in a November game at Wisconsin prevented him from traveling to the 2006 event. "I have mixed feelings because there were so many people that are not with me any more who made it possible for me," stated Paterno during the December 4, 2007 induction ceremony. "How good has it been? What we share in football; there's never been a greater game. We've been involved in the greatest game, the greatest experience anybody could hope for. Great teammates. Guys you could trust. Guys you loved. Guys you would go to war with tomorrow. We're so lucky...we're so lucky. If we lose what we have in football, we'll lose an awful lot in this country and we've got to remember that." Paterno and Bowden, who rank No. 1-2 in victories among major college coaches, received the prestigious Gold Medal, the National Football Foundation's highest honor, at the 2006 Hall of Fame Dinner via a video presentation.
The 2007 season saw Paterno reach two more significant milestones and one tremendous honor. In his 42nd season as head coach, he eclipsed another college football legend, Amos Alonzo Stagg, for longevity at one institution among major college coaches. Stagg was a head coach for 57 years, including 41 at the University of Chicago. In December 2007, Patrick and Candace Malloy honored Paterno's contributions to the University by committing $5 million to create the Malloy Paterno Head Football Coach Endowment at Penn State. "All of Penn State has benefited from Joe's commitment to success with honor," said Patrick Malloy, a 1965 alumnus of the University. "He is so much more than a coach--he's an educator. He teaches his players how to win in life as well as in football, and he teaches every Penn State fan how to make the world a better place through integrity, honesty, and excellence. We are also fortunate enough to know Sue Paterno, and we have the deepest admiration for her volunteer and philanthropic leadership at Penn State and beyond." The Nittany Lions' capped 2007 by defeating Texas A&M in the Valero Alamo Bowl in Paterno's 500th game as head coach. For 59 years and 669 games, Paterno has passionately served the Penn State football program and the university with principle, distinction and success with honor. After 16 years as an assistant coach, he was rewarded in 1966 with the head coaching responsibilities surrendered by the retiring Rip Engle, his college coach at Brown who appointed him to the Penn State staff in 1950 as a brash 23-year-old. He is older now, and wiser, but no less enthusiastic and no less dynamic. He is, simply put, the most successful coach in the history of college football -- a fact that was validated during the 2001 season when he moved past Paul "Bear" Bryant to become the leader in career wins by a major college coach. He also is one of the most admired figures in college athletics, an acknowledged icon whose influence extends well beyond the white chalk lines of the football field. In his 44th year pacing the sidelines as head coach of the Nittany Lions, Paterno has faced every situation imaginable on the gridiron and has used his preparation, experience and understanding of the game he loves to respond and keep the Penn State program among the nation's elite for the past four decades. The victory over Michigan State on Nov. 22, 2008 was Penn State's 800th all-time, becoming just the sixth program in the nation to reach the milestone. Paterno has been a member of the Nittany Lion staff for 487 of the wins - 60 percent of the all-time total. Penn State owns a record of 487-175-7 (73.3) since Paterno joined the staff in 1950. He has missed just three games of a possible 669 Penn State contests over 59 seasons. The 2008 Nittany Lions were a talented and productive squad in all three phases of the game, led by a senior class that earned a stellar 40-11 ledger over the past four years, good for No. 9 in the nation. Penn State was 11-2, earning at least 11 victories for the 14th time under Paterno, and finishing No. 8 in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls, posting their 22nd Top 10 ranking under Paterno. The Lions won at least 10 games for the 20th time under his leadership. A school record 10 Nittany Lions were selected first team All-Big Ten in 2008, more than double the second-highest total, and a record 14 players earned first or second team all-conference accolades. Four Nittany Lions earned All-America honors and A.Q. Shipley became Penn State's first recipient of the Rimington Trophy, presented the nation's outstanding center. It was a record-breaking year for academic accomplishments as well. A program record five players were selected to the 2008 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® team, with four on the first team. Penn State's four first team selections and five overall selections led the nation, becoming the first school to have five Academic All-America® football players since Nebraska in 1997. A program record 55 Nittany Lions earned at least a 3.0 grade point average during the Fall 2008 semester. Among the 55 football student-athletes, a record 19 earned Dean's List recognition by posting a 3.5 GPA or higher. The 2007 edition of the Nittany Lions featured another top 10 defense with five first team All-Big Ten selections, a 1,000-yard running back for the fourth time in six years and the first Penn State quarterback to throw for more than 2,000 yards twice. The victory over the Aggies lifted Penn State to No. 25 in the final USA Today Coaches poll, marking the 33rd time Paterno had guided his team to a Top 25 finish. Penn State earned its 22nd January bowl appearance under Paterno in 2006 and defeated Tennessee, 20-10, in the Outback Bowl. It came as no surprise that less than two weeks after undergoing surgery on his left leg in November 2006, Paterno was back in Beaver Stadium, observing his team from the coaches' booth for the regular season finale against Michigan State. The 2005 Nittany Lions are a squad the legendary coach also will remember fondly. The players and coaches passionately toiled every day to return Penn State to the national championship picture. The Nittany Lions earned an 11-1 record, captured the Big Ten Championship and a thrilling triple overtime decision over Bowden's Florida State squad in the FedEx Orange Bowl. The 11-win season represented another milestone, as Penn State earned at least 10 victories under Paterno in a fifth different decade and for the 19th time overall. The Nittany Lions were No. 3 in the polls, earning their 13th Top 5 finish under the veteran coach. For his leadership in restoring the Nittany Lions to the nation's elite, Paterno was recognized with numerous National Coach of the Year honors in 2005, capped by an unprecedented fifth selection by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA). He also earned national honors from the Associated Press, Bobby Dodd, Home Depot/ESPN, Maxwell Football Club (George Munger), Pigskin Club of Washington, D.C., The Sporting News and the Walter Camp Football Foundation. A member of the Nittany Lions' coaching staff spanning the administrations of 12 U.S. presidents (starting with Harry Truman), Paterno passed Bryant on October 27, 2001 when the Lions secured his 324th victory by rallying from a 27-9 deficit to defeat Ohio State, 29-27, in the greatest Beaver Stadium comeback under the legendary coach. Paterno has posted a 383-127-3 mark in 43 seasons as head coach and is the leader in career wins among major college coaches (third all-time). He passed Bowden (382 wins) on Sept. 20, 2008. Paterno's winning percentage of 74.9 is third-best among active Football Bowl Subdivision (Division I-A) coaches (10 or more years) and he is second all-time in games coached (513) among major college coaches. Paterno is the all-time leader among coaches in bowl appearances (34) and post-season triumphs (23). His overall postseason record of 23-11-1 gives him a winning percentage of 69.1, good for No. 3 among coaches with at least 12 bowl visits. The Nittany Lions are 16-7 in New Year's games under Paterno and 12-5 in contests that comprise the Bowl Championship Series. Since Paterno took over in 1966, Penn State has had 76 first-team All-Americans, with defensive end Aaron Maybin and Shipley earning first team honors in 2008. Over the same span, the Lions have counted 15 Hall of Fame Scholar-Athletes, 31 first-team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-Americans®, (41 overall) and 18 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship winners. Penn State has had at least one Academic All-American® in each of the past seven years. Tackle Gerald Cadogan became the sixth Nittany Lion to twice be selected a first team Academic All-American® with his 2007 and '08 recognitions. Winner of the 2005 Butkus and Bednarik Awards, All-America linebacker Paul Posluszny was selected the 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American® of the Year in Division I football. Paterno's coaching portfolio includes two National Championships (1982, 1986); five undefeated, untied teams; 22 finishes in the Top Ten of the national rankings; five AFCA Coach-of-the-Year plaques, and more than 300 former players who have signed National Football League contracts, 31 of them first-round draft choices. A school record four Nittany Lions were selected in the first round of the 2003 NFL Draft and tackle Levi Brown was the No. 5 overall selection in the 2007 NFL Draft. His teams have registered seven undefeated regular-seasons and he has had 34 teams finish in the Top 25. Penn State has won the Lambert-Meadowlands Trophy, emblematic of Eastern football supremacy, 23 times in Paterno's coaching run, including in 2008. Since 1966, there have been 838 head coaching changes among Division I-A programs, an average of more than six changes per I-A institution! (Includes 21 changes after 2008 season). Paterno is the only coach to win the four traditional New Year's Day bowl games -- the Rose, Sugar, Cotton and Orange bowls -- and he owns a 6-0 record in the Fiesta Bowl. He was selected by the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame as the first active coach to receive its Distinguished American Award. Paterno also was the 1986 Sports Illustrated "Sportsman-of-the-Year." In 2006, Paterno was bestowed a trio of diverse honors in addition to the Hall of Fame announcement and Gold Medal presentation. He was named a Free Spirit honoree and recognized by The Freedom Forum at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. In April, Paterno received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Dapper Dan Charities in Pittsburgh and received the History Makers Award, presented by the Senator John Heinz Pittsburgh Regional History Center. Paterno was recognized twice for his illustrious career in 2004. He was selected the second-best college football coach of all-time by a panel of more than 300 media, current and former football coaches, Heisman Trophy winners and members of the College Football Hall of Fame. Paterno also was chosen the nation's best college football coach of the past 25 years by an ESPN25 expert panel. He finished No. 8 overall in the listing of college and professional coaches from all sports over the past 25 years. The American Football Coaches Association presented Paterno with its highest honor in 2002, the Amos Alonzo Stagg Award. The award honors those "whose services have been outstanding in the advancement of the best interests of football." In 1998, he was the initial winner of the Eddie Robinson Coach-of-the-Year Award, which recognizes an active college coach who is a role model to students and players, an active member of the community and an accomplished coach. Joe Paterno simply is an unusual football coach...and, an unusual person. In an exceptional display of generosity and affection for Penn State, Paterno; his wife, Sue, and their five children announced a contribution of $3.5 million to the University in 1998, bringing Paterno's lifetime giving total to more than $4 million. The gift appears to be, Penn State Vice President for Development Rod Kirsch said, "the most generous ever made by a collegiate coach and his family to a university." The Paterno gift endows faculty positions and scholarships in the College of the Liberal Arts; the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture; the University Libraries and supported two building projects -- a new interfaith spiritual center and the Penn State All-Sports Museum, both on the University Park campus. The museum opened in 2002 and the spiritual center was dedicated in 2003.
"Penn State has been very good to both Sue and me," Paterno said. "We have met some wonderful people here, we've known many students who have gone on to become outstanding leaders in their professions and in society, and all of our children have received a first-class education here. I've never felt better about Penn State and its future potential than I do right now. Sue and I want to do all we can to help the University reach that potential." He and Sue have been heavily involved with the Special Olympics Pennsylvania Summer Games, held each June on the University Park campus. In May 2008, the Paternos were inducted into the Special Olympics Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. Obviously not a person of misplaced priorities, Paterno always has concentrated on seeing that his student-athletes attend class, devote the proper time to studies and graduate with a meaningful degree. He often has said he measures team success not by athletic prowess but by the number of productive citizens who make a contribution to society. The 2008 NCAA Graduation Success Rate Report for Division I institutions revealed that the Penn State football program's 76 percent GSR was No. 2 in the nation among teams ranked in the 2008 final Associated Press poll and well above the national average of 67 percent. The NCAA data also showed that Penn State posted a 77 percent federal graduation rate among freshmen entering in 2001-02, second-highest among Big Ten institutions. The national Division I-A average was 56 percent. The wisdom of Paterno's "total person" approach to football -- which addresses academic and lifestyle matters in addition to athletic prowess -- has won almost universal endorsement from the "products of the system." "He's putting together this winning program, but meanwhile he's teaching 17-, 18-, 19-year-olds how not to screw their lives up, how important education is, how important it is to have social acumen," All-America linebacker Greg Buttle told the San Antonio Express-News in 2007. "Forget what he's done for players. He's done more for a single university than anyone else. It transcends his coaching. No. 1 to him is what he's done for Penn State University, No. 2 is what he has done for players." "...I can tell you that virtually all of the players he's touched in fifty years as an assistant and head coach have been enriched by the experience," former quarterback Todd Blackledge said in the forward to Quotable Joe, a book of quotations by and about Paterno. "I consider myself, and I know my teammates and Penn State players past and present feel likewise, a better person for having played for Joe Paterno." LaVar Arrington, one of the 31 NFL first-round draft choices to come through Paterno's Penn State program, was a two-time All-America selection and won the 1999 Butkus Award as the nation's top linebacker as well as the Maxwell Club's Chuck Bednarik Award, presented to the top collegiate defensive player. "If you're not a man when you get there, you'll be a man before you leave," Arrington said of his Penn State experience. "Joe has his system so that you're prepared for life. Joe trains you more mentally than physically so that nothing will rattle you." Joe and Sue Paterno have five children, all of whom are Penn State graduates, and 16 grandchildren.
THE PATERNO RECORD Season Won Lost Tied Bowl 1966 5 5 0 1967 8 2 1 Gator: Tied Florida State, 17-17 1968 11 0 0 Orange: Beat Kansas, 15-14 1969 11 0 0 Orange: Beat Missouri, 10-3 1970 7 3 0 1971 11 1 0 Cotton: Beat Texas, 30-6 1972 10 2 0 Sugar: Lost to Oklahoma, 14-0 1973 12 0 0 Orange: Beat LSU, 16-9 1974 10 2 0 Cotton: Beat Baylor, 41-20 1975 9 3 0 Sugar: Lost to Alabama, 13-6 1976 7 5 0 Gator: Lost to Notre Dame, 20-9 1977 11 1 0 Fiesta: Beat Arizona State, 42-30 1978 11 1 0 Sugar: Lost to Alabama, 14-7 1979 8 4 0 Liberty: Beat Tulane, 9-6 1980 10 2 0 Fiesta: Beat Ohio State, 31-19 1981 10 2 0 Fiesta: Beat Southern Cal, 26-10 1982 11 1 0 Sugar: Beat Georgia, 27-23 1983 8 4 1 Aloha: Beat Washington, 13-10 1984 6 5 0 1985 11 1 0 Orange: Lost to Oklahoma, 25-10 1986 12 0 0 Fiesta: Beat Miami (Fla.), 14-10 1987 8 4 0 Citrus: Lost to Clemson, 35-10 1988 5 6 0 1989 8 3 1 Holiday: Beat Brigham Young, 50-39 1990 9 3 0 Blockbuster: Lost to Florida State, 24-17 1991 11 2 0 Fiesta: Beat Tennessee, 42-17 1992 7 5 0 Blockbuster: Lost to Stanford, 24-3 1993 10 2 0 Citrus: Beat Tennessee, 31-13 1994 12 0 0 Rose: Beat Oregon, 38-20 1995 9 3 0 Outback: Beat Auburn, 43-14 1996 11 2 0 Fiesta: Beat Texas, 38-15 1997 9 3 0 Citrus: Lost to Florida, 21-6 1998 9 3 0 Outback: Beat Kentucky, 26-14 1999 10 3 0 Alamo: Beat Texas A&M, 24-0 2000 5 7 0 2001 5 6 0 2002 9 4 0 Capital One: Lost to Auburn, 13-9 2003 3 9 0 2004 4 7 0 2005 11 1 0 Orange: Beat Florida State, 26-23 (3 OT) 2006 9 4 0 Outback: Beat Tennessee, 20-10 2007 9 4 0 Alamo: Beat Texas A&M, 24-17 2008 11 2 0 Rose: Lost to Southern California, 38-24 Totals 383 127 3 Bowls: Won 23, Lost 11, Tied 1
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