JoePa’s critics come back out

Associated Press

STATE COLLEGE, Pa.

The heat is on Joe Paterno to turn things around at injury-riddled Penn State after two lackluster losses.

The offensively challenged Nittany Lions (3-3, 0-2 Big Ten) have been inept in the red zone, while the short-handed defense has numerous players sidelined.

Some fans pointed blame at Paterno and his veteran coaching staff after the disheartening 33-13 homecoming loss last week to Illinois, and it’s hard to blame them. Even JoePa himself said he wasn’t up to par in that defeat.

“I don’t think I did a very good job of coaching or getting ready for the game, to be frank with you,” Paterno said Tuesday.

Toss in double-digit road losses to ranked opponents Alabama and Iowa, and a few rabid backers have dusted off the “Joe Must Go” phrase on Internet message boards, their comments a little more noticeable with the team struggling.

The good news for fans is that Penn State will not lose this week. They have a bye, and will play Minnesota (1-5, 0-2) on Oct. 23.

No one doubts Paterno’s impeccable credentials. No coach has led one school as long as Paterno. He is in his 45th season and is three wins shy of his 400th career victory, most among major college coaches.

Paterno doesn’t appear to have a rocky relationship with Penn State president Graham Spanier. JoePa is in the second year of a three-year deal signed after the Big Ten championship season in 2008, with all sides agreeing at the time in a statement that terms of the deal could be “shortened or extended as necessary.”

A notable encounter between Spanier and Paterno did occur in 2004, when the Nittany Lions were at the end of a rough stretch of four losing seasons in five years. Paterno has said he rebuffed a request by administrators to step down, and asked they keep him and his veteran staff together for a shot at turning things around.

They did — and then some. Penn State won two Big Titles and 51 games over the next five seasons.

“Joe has transformed a lot of what we’ve done in the game,” Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said. “Just the excellence that he has always embodied. Anyone that gets a chance to line up against him remembers those days.”