Welcome to the 300 Club
Paterno gets milestone with easy win over Bowling Green
Posted: Sunday September 13, 1998 01:24 AM
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Paterno becomes the fourth major-college coach to reach 300 victories, joining Bear Bryant, Pop Warner and Amos Alonzo Stagg AP |
STATE COLLEGE, Pennsylvania (AP) -- On his morning walk, 'ol No. 300 hit
Joe Paterno like a locomotive.
"I really didn't think it would be a big deal until this
morning," the choked up Paterno said Saturday after No. 9 Penn
State beat Bowling Green 48-3 and gave JoePa his 300th victory. "I
got to think about a lot of things, my first game ... A lot of
things went through my mind, and I thought I'd better be careful or
I'll get carried away."
He was carried away all right. After twice being doused with
water as the final seconds ticked down, two of Paterno's players
lifted him onto their shoulders and carried him to the middle of
the field.
By then, Paterno was truly overcome with emotion. As he was
handed a microphone to address the fans, who a few minutes earlier
were chanting "Joe Pa-terno!" it was tough to tell if he was
wiping away sweat, tears or water. With those thick glasses he
wears, who could tell?
"I'm so overwhelmed, I really can't tell you how welled up I am
with the memories," Paterno said after becoming the sixth coach in
NCAA history to win 300 games. "After 48 years at Penn State, I
salute all the efforts of every team I've been a part of, and that
includes all you fans and all you alumni. I love every one of you.
After all, we are ... "
And the crowd answered: "Penn State!"
The 71-year-old Paterno tried his best to lay low this week,
choosing to sidestep most questions about reaching 300.
"I would have been jumping up and down and waving my hands,"
linebacker Brandon Short said.
Paterno didn't go that far, but after being presented with a
portrait of he and his wife, Sue, and a cake with the number 300 on
it, JoePa was headed home for his post-game pasta party for 60.
"I think a lot of guys just respect the moment," cornerback
David Macklin said. "I know I really respect coach Paterno and
what he has accomplished. As a kid, I remember watching Penn State
games on TV and seeing him and now I'm a part of it."
Playing the game was easy. Cordell Mitchell ran 77 yards for a
touchdown on Penn State's first play, Bruce Branch followed 83
seconds later with a 73-yard punt return for a score and the
Nittany Lions coasted.
Penn State (2-0) also scored on interception returns of 16 yards
by Lavon Arrington and 30 yards by Joe Dawkins, and Mitchell
finished with 104 yards and two TDs in Paterno's milestone victory
before a crowd of 96,291 at Beaver Stadium, most of whom hung
around for a post-game ceremony.
"I didn't expect to see him break down and cry, but it was
great," Arrington said. "It was like seeing your father cry, or
grandfather."
Paterno, in his 33rd season as coach, joins Bear Bryant (323),
Pop Warner (319) and Amos Alonzo Stagg (314) as the only
major-college coaches to collect 300 wins. Eddie Robinson, who
retired from Grambling last season, has the NCAA record of 408 and
John Gagliardi of St. John's, Minnesota, has 342.
Paterno earned a few distinctions of his own. He is the first
major-college coach to win 300 games at one school, and he also
reached 300 quicker than anyone else -- 380 games.
While Paterno wasn't talking much before the game, some former
players were on a weekend when Paterno's 1973 undefeated team
returned to Happy Valley.
"I think it's another game to him, but he understands the
exposure it gives to the university, how it helps recruiting," '73
Heisman Trophy winner John Cappelletti said during a pre-game party
just outside the stadium. "After the game he'll go with the flow,
and then he'll try for the next guy on the list. You know Joe."
That next guy would be Bryant. The way Paterno is going -- he
says he'll stick around at least four more years -- he'll pass
Bryant sometime during the 2000 season.
Numbers alone don't do him justice. Paterno has a genuine love
for the game and has as much enthusiasm as any player celebrating a
game-winning touchdown. But he works his players hard -- some handle
it, others don't.
"In today's kinder and gentler society, you can't be as tough
on the kids," Cappelletti said, "but he's a pretty good
taskmaster. He drove us hard, because he always tried to get the
best out of you."
But there's much more. There's the college Joe, the caring coach
who takes a personal interest in his players and doesn't break NCAA
rules. There's concerned Joe, who has called for a college football
playoff and for players to receive a stipend. And there's generous
Joe, who gave Penn State $3.5 million to endow faculty positions
and scholarships.
Let's not forget corporate Joe, who starred in a Burger King
commercial, pitches local products such as Milano Italian bread and
has an ice cream flavor named after him -- Peachy Paterno. Or
celebrity Joe, who has attended state dinners under presidents
Reagan, Bush and Clinton.
During the week, Paterno reminisced about his head coaching
career, which began in 1966 after 16 seasons as an assistant to Rip
Engle. He said Nebraska's Tom Osborne and Notre Dame's Lou Holtz
were the toughest coaches to go against, and singled out victories
over Miami in 1967, his second season as coach, and Georgia in the
1983 Sugar Bowl as standout games.
The 27-23 victory over the Bulldogs and Heisman Trophy winner
Herschel Walker gave the Lions the first of their two national
titles, The win over Miami came a week after a 23-22 loss to Navy
that had him questioning whether he should have gone to law school
instead of into coaching.
On a sunny Saturday, it was business as usual on the field. The
Lions dominated, piling up 432 yards and holding Bowling Green to
239. The Falcons trailed 34-3 at the half after Jason Strasser
kicked a 43-yard field goal late in the second period.
Paterno's record improved to 300-77-3. Indeed, his .793 winning
percentage is amazing enough, but consider this: Paterno has
accounted for 41.9 percent of Penn State's 716 victories since the
Lions began playing football in 1887.
Under Paterno, the Lions have produced five perfect seasons, 12
seasons of 11 or more victories and 18 bowl victories, the most by
one coach.
"He is truly a great legend," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said
this week. "He will be remembered not only for the great teams and
players he has coached, but also for being a great ambassador for
college football."
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