WASHINGTON--January 14, 2012--“I wanted everybody to settle down,” said former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno to The Washington Post’s Sally Jenkins in his first extensive public comment since the scandal broke. “We never had, until that point, 58 years I think, I had never had to deal with something like that. And I didn’t feel adequate,” Paterno said. The full story is available now online at
wapo.st/joepaterno
and is running on the front page of Sunday’s Washington Post.
Jenkins spoke with Paterno over the course of two days and describes him as “wracked by radiation and chemotherapy, in a wheelchair with a broken pelvis, and ‘shocked and saddened’ as he struggles to explain a break down of devastating proportions.”
In an exclusive interview with The Post, Paterno speaks about his relationship with Jerry Sandusky and why he retired in 1999, his handling of Mike McQueary’s account of what he saw, his future, and more.
“You know, I’m not as concerned about me,” Paterno tells The Post. “What’s happened to me has been great. I got five great kids. Seventeen great grand-children. I’ve had a wonderful experience here at Penn State. I don’t want to walk away from this thing bitter. I want to be helpful.”
Sally Jenkins will be participating in a live online discussion Monday at 10am and questions can be submitted by visiting http://live.washingtonpost.com/joe-paterno-speaks-to-sally-jenkins.html. Readers can also join the conversation on Twitter with
@sallyjenx
using the hashtag #paternospeaks.
For complete coverage, visit http://www.washingtonpost.com/paterno.
AUDIO SOUNDBITE
[Available for use with mandatory on-screen credit to The Washington Post]: “I called, you know, my superiors and I said Hey, we got a problem, I think. Would you guys look into it? Cause I didn’t know, you know. I had never had to deal with something like that. And I didn’t feel adequate.”--Joe Paterno
VIDEO
: Sally Jenkins from State College, PA on her interview with Joe Paterno and what the Penn State icon had to say.
PHOTO GALLERY
: New images of Joe Paterno by The Washington Post. Please contact Getty Images for permission to use.
