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01/27/2012 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Few college coaches embody an entire university and everything that the program, school and community as a whole stands for. Like Paul "Bear" Bryant in Tuscaloosa and Knute Rockne in South Bend, Happy Valley's rich history was carved out by the larger than life persona of Joe Paterno.
The Hall of Fame coach passed away last Sunday due to complications from lung cancer and although his abrupt dismissal from his post in November due to a child-sex scandal that rocked the foundations of the once teflon-coated school, we should never lose sight of one man's quest to do things the right way.
Paterno was born December 21, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York. He went on to play football at Brown University (1946-49) and landed at Penn State in 1950 under then head coach Rip Engle, Fifteen years later, Paterno took over for the retired Engle and remained at that post up until this past November.
Paterno amassed an FBS-record 409 victories in his 46 years at the helm, was named the National Coach of the Year five times, winning two national titles (1982, 86) and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006.
The man with the coke-bottle glasses, rolled up pant legs and classic wind- breaker, manned the sidelines in Happy Valley for nearly half a century, coaching five undefeated teams and two national championshps.
There were certainly times over the years that it seemed like the game had passed JoePa by, but he stayed the course and continued to build a program that achieved both on and off the field. He mentored thousands of young men that have gone on to live richly fulfilling lives. He stayed loyal to his university and although he certainly made his fair share of money, he funneled a good portion of it back into the school.
"His loss leaves a void in our lives that will never be filled," his family said in a statement.
"He died as he lived. He fought hard until the end, stayed positive, thought only of others and constantly reminded everyone of how blessed his life had been. His ambitions were far reaching, but he never believed he had to leave this Happy Valley to achieve them. He was a man devoted to his family, his university, his players and his community."
A well crafted statement that tells Paterno's tale far better than the events of the last few months.
The final chapter in the man's life should not be taken out of context and erase a lifetime of achievements.
Paterno's loyalty, although one of his greatest assets, was also a huge reason for his downfall.
It was in November that former PSU defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky was arrested for a child-sex abuse scandal that tore apart a university that was up to that point, scandal-free.
Regret is something Paterno admitted in a Washington Post interview published a few days before his death.
"In hindsight," Paterno told the Post reporter, "I wish I had done more."
In the interview, Paterno said he was "afraid" to jeopardize university procedure after he was told by assistant coach Mike McQueary what McQueary had seen in a university locker room.
McQueary left out graphic details of the event according to Paterno, who then passed the information he had on to his superiors at the school.
"So I backed away and turned it over to some other people, people I thought would have a little more expertise than I did," Paterno said. "It didn't work out that way."
Certainly in looking back at the events that unfolded, it was naive on his part to "pass the buck" and hope for the best. However, naivety does in no way make him complicit in Sandusky's alleged crimes.
Being able to separate all the good from the obvious bad of late will be for each individual to decide and obviously there will be plenty of people at opposite ends of the spectrum when Paterno's name comes up in conversation.
For me, the indelible mark Paterno leaves on Penn State University, college football and academia as a whole, far outshines the Sandusky scandal that ultimately brought his extraordinary career to an abrupt end.
<< Champion colt returns in Holy Bull Stakes
Hallandale Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two weeks after being announced as the
2011 Eclipse Award winning two-year-old colt, Hansen makes his 2012 debut in
Sunday's $400,000 Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park. The Holy Bull is part
of the
<< Illinois State changes date of 2012 opener
Normal, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Illinois State football team's 2012 season
opener against Dayton has been changed from Thursday, Aug. 30 to Saturday,
Sept. 1 due to the construction on the new renovations to Hancock
Stadium,
Kickoff will
<< 'Melo to sit two games
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Knicks star Carmelo Anthony is expected
to miss the next two games in an effort to heal a variety of injuries.
Anthony will sit out Friday's contest at Miami and will also miss Saturday's
contest at
<< Raptors' Bargnani out with calf issue
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto Raptors forward Andrea Bargnani will be
out for an undefined period of time after aggravating a previous calf injury.
The 26-year-old suffered a strained left calf back on January 11 and missed
six
Hughes completes Dons move >>
Aberdeen, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aberdeen completed the signing of
Stephen Hughes on Friday after the midfielder departed from Scottish Premier
League rivals Motherwell.
Hughes put pen to paper on a contract that will keep h
Gnakpa heads to Inverness on loan >>
Inverness, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Inverness announced Friday that it has
acquired 28-year-old winger Claude Gnakpa on loan from League One side Walsall
until the end of the season.
Gnakpa, who can also play at left back, has also featu
Raiders make it official with Dennis Allen >>
Alameda, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Raiders have made it official and
named Dennis Allen as their new head coach.
According to the club's website, Allen will be introduced at a news conference
on Monday.
Allen, who spent this p
Pees tabbed as Ravens defensive coordinator >>
Owings Mills, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Ravens elevated linebackers
coach Dean Pees to defensive coordinator on Friday.
Pees takes over for the departed Chuck Pagano, who was named head coach of the
Indianapolis Colts earlier this
Two playoff teams from 2007 take center stage on the NFL Network Sunday night in a Week 2 NFL betting match-up when the (0-1) New England Patriots betting head south to Florida for a contest with the (1-0) Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
New England HC Bill Belichick couldn’t care less about the way his team plays in the preseason. With a chance to tie last week’s game with the Baltimore Ravens betting, He elected to go for the two-point conversion and outright victory. The conversion failed, and the Pats ended up falling to the Ravens by a 16-15 final count.
New England rolled off twelve unanswered points to give it a chance at securing the victory, but it never threatened to cover the 3.5-point spread. NFL bettors saw this one coming, as they bet the Ravens down from +6 to +3.5 as the week progressed. QB Tom Brady didn’t take part in the Patriots first preseason clash, but could see action this weekend.
His three replacements all put up embarrassing numbers. They went a combined 17 for 33, and threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. The New England defense was encouraging, as they held the Ravens to 2/12 third down conversions and surrendered just ten first downs. That ‘D’ should be bolstered with the addition of former Bucs and Denver Broncos betting safety John Lynch, who could make his Patriots debut on Sunday against his former mates.
HC Jon Gruden had to be impressed with the way his Bucs played on both sides of the ball in their dominating 17-6 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 1’s NFL pre-season betting action. Bucs bettors were quite happy with the effort, as they made a mockery of the fact that they were underdogs in the game.
The logjam at the quarterback position didn’t get any easier to separate for Gruden, as all four of his QBs had positive experiences in the first exhibition of 2008. The four combined to complete 28 of their 40 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown, and that was without starting QB Jeff Garcia in the lineup.
RB Michael Bennett had 19 carries and four receptions, totaling 90 yards and a touchdown. Expect to see more of Bennett, Kenneth Darby, and Earnest Graham, as they all compete for playing time with Warrick Dunn in the backfield this season. Defensively, the Bucs recorded four sacks and held the Fins offense in check all day.
First round draft pick Aqib Talib was impressive in the secondary, recording a tackle and two pass defenses in his debut. Don’t be surprised to see Talib in the starting lineup opposite Ronde Barber for the Bucs in ’08.
The betting trends suggest that NFL bettors should be backing the Bucs in this intra-conference exhibition.
These two teams hooked up last year in Tampa Bay, with the Bucs winning that game 13-10. The Buccaneers have only lost one preseason game at home dating back to the beginning of the ’05 preseason. The Patriots have had a mixed bag of results in their recent exhibitions. They have gone 2-2 ATS and SU each of the last three years.
New England currently sits as modest 1-point favorites in this preseason showdown with the ‘total’ now sitting at 34.5.
You can find these lines and all of the NFL betting lines , so be sure to login and get your wagers down before kickoff!
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines .
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