Lesson learned: JoePa calls off cleanup duty

The Nittany Lions have other things to worry about after losing to Ohio State.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Their bodies were sore and their egos bruised after an embarrassing loss to No. 1 Ohio State, but at least the Penn State Nittany Lions got to sleep in after a home game for the first time this season.

Coach Joe Paterno believes his squad has learned enough of a lesson off the field that the Nittany Lions no longer have stadium cleanup duty.

Over the summer, an angry JoePa ordered the entire team to pick up trash in the student section on Sunday mornings at Beaver Stadium after several players were implicated in an off-campus fight in April.

That chore apparently ended after the fifth home game of the season, the Oct. 13 win over Wisconsin. The Nittany Lions (6-3, 3-3 Big Ten) were back to their regular Sunday routines this week after the 37-17 loss to the Buckeyes.

“I didn’t do that necessarily to punish them. I did that because I felt they ought to have some idea that as a team there’s got to be somebody saying, ‘Hey, no, we don’t want to do that,’ ” Paterno said Tuesday. “I really wanted them to appreciate the fact that they have the best of all worlds. They’ve got a free education, people who know who they are.”

Coaches, including Paterno, picked up trash, too.

“I think it was good for our kids to realize how fortunate we have it,” Paterno said. “I think what we wanted to do, we did, and I think that’s enough.”

On the field, the education process is ongoing after Saturday’s 20-point loss — Penn State’s worst defeat at home since a 20-0 loss to Michigan six years ago.

The defense took a pounding against the Buckeyes after allowing season highs in points and yardage (453). The Nittany Lions allowed three passing touchdowns for the second straight week, casting doubt on a secondary thought to be one of the best in the country at the start of the season.

Paterno defended his players, and directed much of the blame to the coaching staff.

For instance, cornerbacks Justin King and Lydell Sargeant often played back in zone coverage, as is typical in Penn State’s scheme, though the Nittany Lions couldn’t keep up with Ohio State’s success underneath.

The secondary got beat deep, too.

“We kind of put our corners in a tough situation. We really did. We didn’t change up enough maybe. The kids themselves worked and played hard,” Paterno said.

JoePa thought Buckeyes coach Jim Tressel and his staff outperformed Penn State before retreating a bit.

“They didn’t outcoach us,” Paterno said immediately afterward. “But they did a couple things really well.”