JoePa doesn’t consider stopping

Associated Press

STATE COLLEGE, Pa.

A near-miss on the Penn State sideline left Joe Paterno sore, though this latest physical setback hasn’t left the coach thinking about his future.

Another four, five years on the job? Hardly.

“I’m thinking about Purdue, I’m not worried about anything else right now ... I’m not worried about it,” the 84-year-old Paterno said Tuesday when asked if his most recent set of aches and pains had him mulling the future.

“Who knows,” Paterno added with a straight face, “maybe I’ll go 10 years.”

Just another year of coaching intrigue at Penn State (5-1, 2-0 Big Ten).

Paterno’s contract is up this season, though he has offered no hints he’s pondering retirement. And both Paterno and the administration have said a man who’s held his job a record 46 seasons doesn’t necessarily need something in writing to keep it.

“That’s newspaper talk and media and fans,” Paterno said about speculation. “But I feel too good for me to be thinking about that. Other than the leg ... hurting, I feel great.”

Paterno is two wins away from tying Eddie Robinson, who had 408 at Grambling State.