What has transpired at Penn State in the last 48 hours is sad.

The only thing sadder is that Joe Paterno, the greatest coach in Division I history, is being treated so poorly.

The amount of disrespect toward Paterno in reaction to the horrible scandal at Penn State is a disgrace. The calls for the octogenarian to be fired or step down are ludicrous, but the Penn State administration listened nonetheless and now the beloved coach will reportedly not be at the program’s helm next season.

Penn State cancelled Tuesday’s regularly scheduled press conference and did not send any representatives to the Big Ten Coaches Teleconference. This was a last-ditch effort by the administration to save face, but the worst thing about this disgraceful act is Paterno did not have a chance to defend himself. Paterno wanted to talk to the press and defend his name, but the administration would have none of it.

The only question I have is what would everybody have liked him to have done? Did we forget that Jerry Sandusky was investigated in 1998 and charges were never filed? Did you want him to go to the police on a single allegation that was brought to him? Or did you want him to do what he was obligated to do and have faith in the system?

Joe Paterno did the right thing, something his former counterpart at Ohio State, should have done. Paterno reported the claim to his superiors and went on coaching his team to a 9-4 season. The fact that members of the athletic department sat on this information like Jim Tressel did is their own fault, not Paterno’s. Yet Paterno is getting the blame for doing what he was supposed to do.

He is paid to coach and monitor the football team and that is exactly what he did. It is not his job to fully investigate every single allegation that ends up on his desk. His job is to send all allegations to the athletic director and the compliance department for further investigation, which he did. If Tressel had forwarded the allegations against his program to his superiors and they did nothing with it, would Tressel have still needed to resign? Once he did his part, Paterno should face no more scrutiny for his part in this incident.

I know Joe Pa is synonymous with Penn State football, but he is merely the coach. There was no way for Paterno to have known about any of Jerry Sandusky’s other incidents if they weren’t reported to him – unless of course he followed Sandusky every day. He can’t be held responsible for anything beyond the single incident of which he was made aware, and he handled that incident properly.

There is a reason Paterno won 409 football games and counting. There is a reason Paterno is still coaching at the same school he started at in 1950. Paterno is a great coach, a great leader and a man who deserves all the respect in the world. You cannot pin this incident on Paterno and say he lacked institutional oversight. You cannot tell me that this is in any way, shape or form Joe Paterno’s fault.

Joe Pa is the greatest football coach who ever lived and he should be remembered for his 400-plus victories, not for the Penn State administration’s negligence.

Assistant sports editor Josh Walfish is a Medill sophomore. He can be reached at [email protected]