Penn State president: Decision not imminent on restoring Paterno statue
Penn State president Eric Barron said no decision has been made about whether to put a statue of legendary coach Joe Paterno back in front of Beaver Stadium.
The statue was taken down in 2012 after a report by former FBI director Louis J. Freeh said that Paterno along with university administrators covered up sexual abuse allegations against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.
Sandusky was convicted of 45 counts of child sexual abuse and sentenced to 30-to-60 years in state prison.
“A decision is not imminent," Barron said about the statue to USA Today. "I will follow a process of deliberation and discussion that will take time, and until then, I don't plan to speak publicly about it."
• NCAA agrees to restore Joe Paterno's vacated Penn State wins
Sports Figures With Their Own Statues
John Chaney
Michael Perez/AP
Carl Yastrzemski
Steven Senne/AP
Willie Stargell
AP
Mario Lemieux
Keith Srakocic/AP
Michael Jordan
Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images
Babe Ruth
Diamond Images, Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
Willie Mays
JOHN G. MABANGLO/AFP/Getty Images
Ted Williams
Joe Skipper/Reuters; AP; Jim McIsaac, Joe Robbins/Getty Images
Magic Johnson
Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images; Al Goldis/AP
Bobby Orr
AP
Gordie Howe
Dave Reginek/Getty Images
Stan Musial
Rich Pilling /MLB Photos via Getty Images
Johnny Unitas
AP
Larry Bird
Focus on Sport/Getty Images
Jerry West
John W. McDonough/SI
Honus Wagner
Andy Altenburger/Icon SMI
Ty Cobb
Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images
Wilt Chamberlain
Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images
Walter Johnson
Diamond Images/Getty Images
Warren Spahn
Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images
Dale Earnhardt
AP
Nolan Ryan
Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
Hank Aaron
Jim McIsaac, Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Dan Marino
Scott Boehm/Getty Images
Don Shula
Kirby Lee-US PRESSWIRE
Karl Malone
Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images
John Stockton
Kent Horner/NBAE via Getty Images
Mike Schmidt
AP
Wayne Gretzky
Dave Buston, E.J. Flynn/AP
Scottie Pippen
Greg Nelson/SI
Earl Campbell
Tom Hauck/Getty Images
Bob Feller
Matt Sullivan/Getty Images
Ernie Lombardi and Frank Robinson
AP
Al Kaline
Tom Pidgeon/Getty Images
Jeff Bagwell
Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
Tiger and Earl Woods
AP
Roberto Clemente
Fred Vuich/SI
Ernie Banks
AP
Rod Carew
Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
Harmon Killebrew
Bruce Kluckhohn/Getty Images
Tom Landry
AP
Ozzie Smith
AP
Arnold Palmer
AP
Bob Cousy
Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images
Maurice "Rocket" Richard
AP
George Mikan
David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images
Art Rooney Sr.
AP
Willie McCovey
Jerry Driendl/Getty Images
Bear Bryant
John David Mercer/US Presswire
Bobby Bowden
AP
Arnold "Red" Auerbach
Brian Snyder/Reuters
Kirby Puckett
Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
Ben Hogan
Hunter Martin/Getty Images
Payne Stewart
Ernie Harwell
AP
Harold "Red" Grange
Scott Boehm/Getty Images
Nick Saban
Kelly Lambert/US Presswire
Arthur Ashe
AP
Vince Lombardi and Curly Lambeau
Scott Boehm/Getty Images
Zinedine Zidane
MEHDI FEDOUACH/Getty Images
Pat Tillman
Mike Moore/Getty Images
Ernie Davis
Marc Squire/Getty Images
Tim Tebow, Steve Spurrier and Danny Wuerffel
AP
Doug Flutie
AP
Rocky Balboa
Al Tielemans/SI
Oscar De La Hoya
JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images
Tony Gwynn
AP
Enos Slaughter
AP
Harold Baines
Jerry Lai/US Presswire
Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr, Johnny Pesky, and Dom DiMaggio
AP
Diego Maradona
JUAN MABROMATA/AFP/Getty Images
George Best, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton
AP
George Steinbrenner
AP
Allan H. "Bud" Selig
Scott Boehm/Getty Images
Chick Hearn
Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Harry Caray
AP
Lou Holtz
Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
The NCAA stripped 112 wins from Paterno's records, fined the school $60 million, placed a bowl ban on the football program and took scholarships away. The NCAA agreed to restore Paterno’s victories last month and gave the school its full complement of scholarships.
Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour says she doesn’t know where the statue is, only saying that “it’s safe and protected.”
“Look, the statue was not about Joe Paterno," Angelo DiMaria, who sculpted the statue, said. "It really was not, in a big way. It was about Penn State. It was about the team, the students, the legacy that Penn State has built. That was what the statue was about."
The statue debate continues as Penn State, the NCAA and Paterno’s family head to court on Friday to resolve issues concerning the family’s lawsuit against the university and the NCAA over a consent decree made in 2012.
- Scooby Axson
