Joe Paterno: American college football coach (1926-2012)
Joseph Vincent Joe Paterno (pronounced /pəˈtɜrnoʊ/; December 21, 1926 — January 22, 2012) was an American college football coach.
He was the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions for 46 years from 1966 through 2011. Paterno's nickname was "JoePa".
 Paterno at a 2010 rally | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 21, 1926 Brooklyn, New York |
| Died | January 22, 2012 (aged 85) State College, Pennsylvania |
| Playing career | |
| 1946–1949 | Brown |
| Position(s) | Quarterback, cornerback |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1950–1965 | Penn State (assistant) |
| 1966–2011 | Penn State |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1980–1982 | Penn State |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 409–136–3 |
| Bowls | 24–12–1 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 2 National (1982, 1986) 3 Big Ten (1994, 2005, 2009) | |
| Awards | |
| Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year (1986) 5× AFCA COY (1968, 1978, 1982, 1986, 2005) 3× Walter Camp COY (1972, 1994, 2005) 3× Eddie Robinson COY (1978, 1982, 1986) 2× Bobby Dodd COY (1981, 2005) Paul "Bear" Bryant Award (1986) 3× George Munger Award (1990, 1994, 2005) Amos Alonzo Stagg Award (2002) Home Depot Coach of the Year Award (2005) Sporting News College Football COY (2005) 3× Big Ten Coach of the Year (1994, 2005, 2008) | |
| College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 2007 (profile) | |
Paterno was an Italian-American who was born and raised in Brooklyn. His team won 409 games with him as coach, so he had the record for the most wins by an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) coach. He is the only FBS coach to reach 400 victories. He coached five undefeated teams that won major bowl games. In 2007, was entered the College Football Hall of Fame.
Penn State trustees fired Paterno in the middle of the football season in November 2011. The university was concerned about Paterno's possible responsibility after long-time assistant coach Jerry Sandusky was arrested on child sexual abuse charges.
Paterno died of lung cancer on January 22, 2012.
References
Other websites
- Penn State profile Archived 2018-07-27 at the Wayback Machine
- Joe Paterno on IMDb
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