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Ex-players ask Penn State to bring back Joe Paterno statue
Posted On Jul 06 2016
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Penn State released a response to the petition. “Our program has always been one of integrity, honesty, and respect”.
The letter, distributed by former punter/tight end Brian Masella, was sent to Penn State President Eric Barron and every member of the university’s Board of Trustees.
More than 200 former Penn State football players and coaches have signed a strongly worded letter calling on the university to restore the statue of legendary coach Joe Paterno, which was removed from campus in the aftermath of the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal.
“We have been told during the last four-plus years that the board and administration are waiting for the appropriate time to fix the damage they created”.
“We have been told during the last four-plus years that the board and administration are waiting for the appropriate time to fix the damage they created”.
“This a common act of decency, which is both warranted and long overdue”, the letter reads, in regard to an apology.
It’s been over four years since the passing of Joe Paterno, the polarizing former head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions football team.
The statue was taken down in 2012 due to the Jerry Sandusky scandal. Now is the appropriate time.
For years, the space that once occupied Joe Paterno’s statue outside of Beaver Stadium has been demolished and turned into a symbolic-less patch of grass.
According to the Inquirer, a spokesman for the school said there was no timeline on acknowledging Paterno’s legacy and there would be a “time and place” for that.
The university’s leaders have repeatedly stated a desire to restore unity to the Penn State community.
The lettermen who signed the letter included Penn State’s lone Heisman Trophy victor John Cappelletti, star quarterback Chuck Fusina and All-American linebacker Paul Posluszny. With a much higher percentage of older players – ones who knew Paterno as an assistant (1950-65) or in his first years as a head coach – supporting the cause, Jones found the ideal opportunity to crack a Brexit joke.
