Joe Paterno, who is considered as one of the most successful coaches of college football died today at the age of 85. He was well known as the face of the Pennsylvania State University and became widely acclaimed as a symbol of integrity in college athletics.
But his end as a college coach was not so rosy as he was fired during the season of 2011 as there was a row of controversy against him over a child abuse case. Death of Joe Paterno was announced by his family in a statement on Sunday morning. The cause of his death was lung cancer and he died at the Mount Nittany Medical Centre.
Joe Paterno faced death the way he lived. He fought the disease till the end and remained positive as he was always on the field attacking the opponents. Though Joe Paterno had many ambitions in life, but he never left this Happy Valley to run after them.
Joe Paterno was very much devoted to his family and also to the university. As a coach he made a record of leading his team to victory most number of times. When Illinois was defeated by Penn State by 10-7 on 29th October 2011, it was the 409th game victory for Joe Paterno as a coach. In that match he surpassed Eddie Robinson of Grambling for achieving most numbers of career victories among the first division coaches.
Though he was fired at the age of 84 in 2011, it is better to forget those bad memories and remember him in a positive note just like the way he was in life when he lived. Let his soul rest in peace.
