RAY SWANSON | Keystoner Paterno, Nittany Lions struggling

Joe Paterno is not making excuses. He doesn't have to since he's one of the winningest football coaches in Division I history.
Now in his 38th season as head coach at Penn State, Joe Pa has watched the wheels come off his once-proud Nittany Lion steamroller and he certainly must be wondering "when is it all going to end?"
Paterno's forces came within inches of grabbing some salvation to an otherwise miserable season recently when the Nittany Lions dropped the heartbreaking 21-20 loss to Ohio State. The Lions had the Buckeyes on the ropes and were looking for the KO when the defending national champions caught fire and won it in the final 1:35 of the game.
Not all his fault
In all fairness to Joe, what has transpired with his Nittany Lions this season is not entirely his fault. He has had numerous problems with his players this season, both on and off the field. There have been a number of DUI charges against several of his players, underage drinking, a sexual assault charge, a criminal mischief charge, and others.
What this all adds up to is a 2-8 football season for the Nittany Lions and an 0-6 mark in the Big Ten. Joe is looking for some Happy Days in Happy Valley.
Paterno is no spring chicken either. He's closing in on 77 but still shows the desire and commitment to be one of the finest in his profession. This season marks only the fourth losing season in the Paterno era, but the third in the last four years.
We remember well Paterno's speaking engagements in the area and his recruiting trips to the valley in order to sign some of the finest young players. He was always a gentleman and a scholar, a true role model.
Two standouts
The 2003 collegiate football season has turned the corner and is heading down the homestretch.
Before things get too far along, however, we would like to expound on the outstanding performances of several of our area athletes who have gone that extra mile in sparking their respective teams.
The first two to come to mind are Thiel College's free safety Kennard Davis, and Westminster College's Scott Froelich. Both have had tremendous seasons.
Davis, a product of Farrell High, showed what All-Americans are all about when the Tomcats blitzed Bethany, 42-14. Davis was a one-man wrecking crew as he outscored the Bison himself on interception touchdown returns of 99 and 24 yards to go along with an 89-yard kickoff return for another score. The 89 kick return and the 99 interception return were both school records.
It was Thiel's first win over Bethany since 1991.
Napotnik has season-best
Another area product, Thiel's Justin Napotnik, who performed at Sharpsville High, rushed for a season-best 99 yards on 20 carries including a 27-yard TD run.
The Tomcats are coached by Jack Leipheimer, a former Hickory High player who had coached earlier at Kennedy Catholic and at Allegheny College.
Froelich, who hails from Cuyahoga Falls High, is a junior running back for the Titans. He scored four times in the Titans' 49-20 win over Grove City recently. His four tallies tied the school record and in his performance, he scored on an 80-yard run for a career long.