The wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal that plagued the Pennsylvania State University began unfolding in the early months of 2001. After the countless investigative reports, the conviction Sandusky was sentenced with ultimately was guilty of 45 out of the 48 counts brought against him. The repercussions this immoral, selfish man caused rang out through the rest of the university, it’s staff, and especially the exceptional football program. The debate of what could have done better by the higher-ups of the coaching staff and those who witnessed the unlawful acts is a personal opinion there is no right answer to without being in the shoes of the men in that situation. Most popular is the consequence Joe Paterno faced as head coach of the Nittany Lions, who was unforgivably fired after his era compromising 46 dedicated years of leadership with 409 wins(NCAA recently restored the 111 wins they previously removed back under his name, replacing him back into record books as the winningest Division 1 football coach). Further than the success on the field, JoePa made it his mission to ensure his players weren’t all brawn and no brains. He held them in high academic standing, and getting by just because they were Penn State football players wasn’t an option in Joe’s eyes. The repercussions that rung out after the scandal was revealed to the public fell on Joe Paterno and the image he represented to the Penn State community. As those who followed the unfolding of the Sandusky crimes may know, the punishment the head coach faced for not throwing one of the staff members who had worked for Penn State football for 32 years under the bus the first chance he got, he instead considered the thought of taking everything into account and alleviating all that was going to pour down on the national superpower football program he built.
The crimes he had no part of were also the driving force in the removal of his victories, statue, and plaques prescribing all he had accomplished on this campus.

Additionally, the mural painted of him in downtown State College on the corner of Heister Street and College Avenue has been altered numerous times by the original artist, Michael Pilato. The painter did this since he didn’t want the art he created with his own hands to cause disputes or draw even more unwanted attention to the area that had suffered enough. The changes that took place within the painting included originally painting a halo over Paterno’s head after his death which sorrowfully occurred a short two months after his firing, and then a removal of the halo but the addition of a blue ribbon on his chest honoring sexual-abuse victims and awareness. The halo did eventually returned atop his head in 2012. Rightly so, Sandusky who was formerly pictured two seats to Paterno’s left, was entirely painted over. He is now replaced by Dora McQuaid, a Penn State graduate who is a poet and advocates for domestic and sexual abuse victims. Wrapped around her head and body is a blue ribbon, as well. Along with McQuaid are two red handprints, one from Ann Van Kuren who was a woman on the jury that convicted Sandusky, and one is from one of Sandusky’s victims. The artist that removed the halo posted a video on Youtube of the recreation process titled “Righting a Personal Wrong”. Reminiscing on his prior decisions and how he handled his art, Pilato wished he could take back the mistake he made in ever removing the halo in the first place.

 

One of the more widely-known consequences inflicted upon Paterno was his statue’s removal that was once on the perimeter of Beaver Stadium. Since then, the University has been under constant scrutiny as to whether the mark where his statue used to be had to be so concealed. The former Penn State President, Rodney Erickson justified the destroying of the statue by saying it had become a “‘source of division and an obstacle to healing’, along with symbolizing a ‘recurring wound’ to all child-abuse victims if it were to remain”(Tornoe, 2016). The spot is so concealed spectators who were lucky enough to witness the statue in the past find it difficult locating where it once stood. How well the former site of the statue has been renovated to blend in with the rest of the scenery and disguise the sacred shrine it once was goes to show the measures this University took to blur out this time period in their history.

The complete erasing and extensive attempts to wipe Joe Paterno out of Penn State’s history by the University despite all he did to make the institution it is today, bothers fans of Joe Paterno to this day. Imaginably, two of these fans especially irritated are the creators of the original statue, cousins Yesid Gomez and Wilfer Buitrago. Since the destruction of their creation and Penn State’s silence regarding the issue, a seed has been growing to think of another way to get around the school’s undoings. “Penn State should have given us the courtesy of contacting us when they removed the statue and letting us know where it is. Instead, they are not responding to us, so we decided to bring the statue back again”(Tornoe, 2016). “’Penn State made a statement and we’re making a statement back,’ said Gomez”(Oh, 2016).

A Philly.com article written in February of this year reports that the two are working in a secret, unannounced location in Ephrata of Lancaster County building two new statues. The reason for not one but two statues is that one will be a donation to the Paterno family that has gone through more than any family should in one lifetime, and the other will be a display for Penn Staters to view for years to come. Unlike the previous statue’s building, these are being built without the permission from Penn State, the Paterno family, or DiMaria, who is the man Gomez and Buitrago used for inspiration for the first statue.

They feel they have a right to do this as they are self-financing the project, costing them a hefty $100,000. Not focusing on the financial burden the statue may enforce upon them, they know their piece of art will be well worth it in the end if it in any way encaptures the sentiments the former statue did for those who looked up to Joe Paterno as a man that truly cared for his players and would do nothing intentional to put them in harm’s way. “We’re not worried about money, we’re worried about making a statement”(Tornoe, 2016). “‘We are creators. We are not in politics. We are not cops… This is who we are,’ Gomez said as he looked down at his clay-stained hands”(Oh, 2016). Although the new statue will be eerily similar to the old, there will a key difference being instead of the Number One hand gesture the old statue sculpted Paterno having, the new will have his right hand shaped as a fist, instead. Buitrago explains their decision to change the statue singularly in this way that speaks volumes because Joe Paterno’s “focus was never being Number One”(Oh, 2016). They hope the statue they make that does not go to the Paterno family will eventually make its way back to its rightful home at Beaver Stadium, “for all the fans and the people that bleed blue and white”(Tornoe, 2016). Gomez informed the interviewers that if everything goes as planned, work on the clay sculpture should be completed in another six months after taking five months to cast in bronze from the time this article was written in February of this year.

Another Philly.com article highlights the attempt by over 200 former Penn State University football players that were coached by Paterno to bring back the statue and correct the damage caused by former board and administration members. These ex-players came together and sent a letter to the board of trustees and current president, Eric Barron, and in addition to requesting the statue be brought back to campus, asked for an apology for Sue Paterno, Joe’s wife. Sue who was looked at as much more that the coach’s wife especially when it came to academics. Lastly, these adamant men demanded the restoration of the wall that surrounded the statue honoring past players. Agreeably, it is absurd that players that did no wrong and had no knowledge of what was going on in their locker rooms while they weren’t present should have their rewards taken away from them like they never existed. All the hard work they put into making a name for themselves in the four years they played Penn State football was ripped from under them because of something they had absolutely no control over.

One aspect of the University that will remain tied to all Joe Paterno and his wife did for this community is the library. Many have worriedly wondered that if University could do something as drastic as obsolete his statue from the stadium, the next step would be something as simple as removing his name from the library. Rodney Erickson wrote “he feels ‘strongly’ that the library’s name should remain, as ‘Paterno Library symbolizes the substantial and lasting contributions to the academic life and educational excellence that the Paterno family has made to Penn State University'”(Johnson, 2012).

Additionally, for the first time since the scandal, during this impressive football season compared to recent years that is now on it’s tail end, encompassed a game celebrating Joe Paterno. Rather slyly, the the same day as the stripe-out game on September 17th a ceremony was held to honor the illustrious former coach’s first game for the first time since he was removed. Why the University chose that day on this year to finally acknowledge his presence on this campus is unknown, but the public’s opinion as expected, were mixed.

Another change the University underwent after the scandal was the transition from the phrase “Paternoville” to “Nittanyville”. This chance of name of the group of students who camp out in tents outside of the student entrance gate every game to secure the best seats in the house was decided on by Penn State student officers of the organization alone. “‘Now, it’s a new era of Nittany Lion football,’ Weller said. ‘And by changing the name to Nittanyville we want to return the focus to the overall team and the thousands of students who support it. We thank the Paterno family for their gracious assistance and support over the last several years.'(Horne, 2012)” With the change of title of this dedicated group of football fans, came the establishment of this group of students vowing to donate a portion of the funds they raise to the Center of the Protection of Children centered at the Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital. It is assumed that this group of students did not want the name alone to sway prospective participants of Nittanyville elsewhere.

Sooner rather than later, there will surely be outspoken people who express their opinion outright at the reveal of the new Joe Paterno statue. After getting emersed in these articles, it is blatant to tell that pleasing everyone on this decision about what to do to remember, or to forget this man depending on who you’re talking to. How the public reacts to the new statue and where it’s home will come to be whether it be on main campus somewhere similar to where it was before or somewhere that will bring about less dramatic uproar should be interesting to keep up with in the months to come.

 

References

Tornoe, Rob. “New Joe Paterno Statue Being Made in Secret Location.” Philly.com. The Inquirer, 21 Feb. 2016. Web. 05 Dec.

2016.

Oh, Anita. “Penn State Fans Will Soon See A New Joe Paterno Statue.” CBS Philly. CBS, 29 Feb. 2016. Web. 05 Dec. 2016.

Snyder, Susan. “Put Paterno Statue Back on Campus, Penn State Lettermen Say.” Philly.com. The Inquirer, 05 July 2016. Web. 05 Dec. 2016.

Johnson, Jenna. “Joe Paterno Statue Removed, Name Left on Penn State Library.” The Washington Post. WP Company, 22 June 2012. Web. 05 Dec. 2016.

“Sandusky Image Replaced on Penn State Mural.” ESPN.com. ESPN, 26 June 2012. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.

Macur, Juliet. “Why Is Penn State Celebrating Joe Paterno?” The New York Times. The New York Times, 17 Sept. 2016. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.

Horne, Kevin. “Paternoville Changes Name to Nittanyville.” Onward State. Onward State, 17 July 2012. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.