Joe Knows Character
By Mitch Berg
One of the reasons I’m so dilatory and mercenary about following most professional sports (unless the Cubs, Twins or Bears are in the running) is that most pro and, indeed, college sports are just another commodity-based business these days.
Not that I ever really took after athletes as “role models”, although Dick Butkus taught a lot of key life lessons – but as I grew up, I realized that cynicism about sports was both amply justified and a two-way street.
So I was both surprised and gratified to read this: Joe Paterno is spanking his Penn State football team for having acted like a bunch of spoiled thugs, forcing the whole team to clean the 100,000+ seat stadium after each home game to punish about a dozen of their teammates for participating in a brawl:
We’re all going to do it, everybody,” Paterno told the Harrisburg Patriot-News after a banquet in suburban Philadelphia. “Not just the kids that were involved. ‘Cause we’re all in it together. This is a team embarrassment. I wouldn’t call it anything much other than that.”
This is easily the greatest punishment in recent collegiate history, an absolutely diabolical, telling, high-impact bit of discipline that should remind one and all that what Paterno has been doing out in State College, Pa., all these years is more than just win 363 football games, including 20 the past two seasons.
In a coaching business so full of phonies who talk character only to bend the rules, who consider the definition of discipline a player’s weight-room attendance, who wouldn’t dare pull something like this because it might hurt recruiting, here’s Joe Pa, four decades on the job and not giving a damn.
Except about what’s right.
And I loved this part:
It’s a job that usually goes to members of club sports on campus – say, rugby or crew – which do it to raise money so they can compete. Paterno said the clubs still will get the $5,000 for the job, but his guys, fresh off playing 60 minutes of major college football the day before, will do all the work starting Sunday morning.
It’s gratifiying to know that there’s one participant in the college sports industry that still has a sense of responsibility…:
“I don’t condone (the fight),” Paterno said. “Our kids were wrong.”
And across the nation college football coaches faint.
Most coaches have spent their offseason complaining about not being able to text butt-kissing messages to recruits. They no sooner would wear out their players on an off day with garbage picking than give up their country club memberships.
…and a little scary to realize you have to go to an 80-year-old throwback to an era a couple of generations back to find it.
May 23rd, 2007 at 11:48 am
The conventional wisdom is that moves and attitude like this would hurt recruiting (I’m not playing for that “old hard&ss”), but it also can generate a big boost. I remeber seeing a story a few years back that talked about old school disciplinary coaches like Joe Pa and Chaney of Temple BB.
The piece focused on how coaches like them have a big leg up with moms, and moms have a big influence on school choice. Because of their experience and style these guys are viewed as trustworthy father figures that will help keep their kid on the right path.
May 23rd, 2007 at 11:51 am
He was asked once to do a TV interview for major network years ago and turned them down because he said “I think I’m busy, my wife and I are going to Mass”.
May 23rd, 2007 at 12:26 pm
The Logical Husband’s uncle is a professor at PSU (architecture IIRC) and they know the Paterno family quite well. Joe Pa is and always has been a class act and someone I would love the Junior Logician to play for. Alas, the Junior Logician is a little too young as it sounds as if Coach may retire soon.
You’re right Nordeaster – moms do have an influence on who their kids play for and this mom will be looking for the next generation Joe Paterno.
LL
May 23rd, 2007 at 11:39 pm
Mitch” what a wonderfully bizarre post; While you are, self-confesssed, both “dilatory and mercenary” about pro sports (who could argue – Lewis Carroll and Timothy Leary are both dead) and it is abundantly clear that you were never an athlete at any level, you nonetheless find the capacity to be twice gratified to see this “Joe Paterno spanking”. More stuff that gave rise to psychoanalysis.
I am sure that if you made a simple statement about the incredible imbalance of USA cultural worship of pro athletes vs. how much they desrrve it (say, in one short paragraph) everyone – especially me – would agree. But instead; a George Will on 3 martinis wannabe post.
Ah well, the East Coast patricians need some competiton.
May 24th, 2007 at 8:33 am
Shorter coldeye — use littler words please
May 24th, 2007 at 9:44 am
Not sure what the significance/tie-in is to the story above, but recall the Joe P is a Republican. He even spoke at a Republican convention a few years back.
And it strange, I love sports, including college and professional, but have little respect for a large number of the particapants in it. When the UofM had the scandel in the 1990’s with the basketball program, someone asked if this would affect their diplomas. The response was “no, because the UofM had a zero graduation rate amoung scholorship mens basketball players during that time”.
May 24th, 2007 at 10:30 am
Coldeye,
Who pissed in your Wheaties?
it is abundantly clear that you were never an athlete at any level,
I hated hated hated coaches. Strooth. I used to run 6-10 miles a day, and then biked 20-30 for a long time. And I friggin’ rocked at table tennis. Adult life hasn’t been kind to whatever athleticism I’ve had, but I work out 3x a week and will be biking to work all summer.
What’s “abundantly clear” is that you are all about huge generalizations and galloping assumptions.
But don’t let that get in your way!
May 24th, 2007 at 12:42 pm
Oh, yeah:
I am sure that if you made a simple statement…everyone – especially me – would agree. But instead; a George Will on 3 martinis wannabe post.
Huh.
So it’s my style that you,uh, have a problem with?
I write what I want, in any way I feel like.