While Joe Paterno reached a record 409 wins, victories don't always define a man. (AP)
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Can a great man's life be judged by its final two months?
Joe Paterno died Sunday morning, and that central question remains unanswered. An American legend passed and his legacy will be defined, for many, by how those final months played out -- in controversy, in sadness, in disgrace.
Is that how he should be remembered?
"It's so crazy that this one [freakin'] pervert son of a bitch can bring down a university."
Paul Levine is speaking not about Paterno, but about Jerry Sandusky, whose alleged actions are central to the narrative but certainly not the end of it. Levine met Paterno in the 1960s as sports editor and eventually editor of the student Daily Collegian.
It is relationship that didn't end with graduation. Levine fondly recalls a note he received from Paterno as a first-year law student: "Keep your goals set high."
"I viewed him then," said Levine, now an accomplished author and screenwriter, "as a towering figure."
The towering figure -- arguably one of the greats in American history -- leaves a complicated legacy. Coach, mentor, educator, philanthropist, king of Happy Valley, which is where the real discussion diverges.
"He has the eyes of an eagle. He could see through trees, around corners, through people. If you were doing something wrong, you couldn't hide."
Those words were attributed to former Penn State All-American Dave Joyner (1969-71) in the book Quotable Joe published in 2000. They look back more than 40 years ago. They suggest how long Paterno was king of a humble central Pennsylvania hamlet. It also suggests all the good and bad connotations that accompany those words.
If Paterno had the eyes of an eagle, could see around corners -- 40 years ago -- how could he not have an inkling of the alleged actions of one of his most trusted lieutenants (Sandusky)? Short of that, how could he not comprehend what Mike McQueary reportedly told him about Sandusky allegedly sexually assaulting a boy in 2002?
In Sally Jenkins' fine Washington Post column of last week, Paterno said he "never heard of rape and a man." Whether you believe him or not, how sad that the passage stands as some of his final words.
They say absolute power corrupts absolutely. But to suggest power had corrupted Paterno may be too insensitive on this day. That's one of the issues. Any obituary has to account prominently for the victims and their shattered lives. Any obituary of the great coach should not include the number "409" today, at least not up high in the copy. That all-time victories number hardly defines the man, if it ever did.
"I was there when Woody Hayes punched the guy in the Gator Bowl," said Glen Mason, who was an Ohio State assistant that night in 1978. "When all is said and done, it is a chapter in the book -- it's not the book."
That's why it's a complicated heritage. A man who could have been president of the NCAA -- hell, he could have been president of the country -- will no doubt also be central to court dealings and civil suits in months and years to come.
Paterno will also be the mentor for Mason and scores of others. At Nike outings in Arizona, the majority of coaches would play golf. Mason would grab a legal pad, head out to the hotel pool and pick the brain of a giant.
"I was always amazed he would give me the answer with so much common sense, I would almost be embarrassed I asked the question," Mason said.
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