Penn State Football: Why Penn State Should Keep the Joe Paterno Statue

After everything that has taken place regarding Penn State over the last several months, there are many mixed emotions throughout college football.

As if the whole Jerry Sandusky incident wasn't enough, the recent Freeh Report didn't help matters. In fact, it showed us that many people we thought we knew actually had a dark side and were hiding many secrets for several years.

Probably the person we are most disappointed in this whole case is former Penn State head coach Joe Paterno. He, as well as many others involved on the Penn State staff, knew what Sandusky was doing to those little boys and simply did not do enough to put a stop to the abuse.

Now that the details are out, the question now is, does the statue of Paterno in front of Beaver Stadium go or stay?

Of course, with the incident still so fresh in everyone's mind, many are quick to want to see it gone forever. I'm sure they would like to see it melted down and sold as scrap metal.

Penn State has already said that the statue will remain (via ESPN) standing and that the board of trustees will get together when some of the heat dies down and make a more concrete decision. Other reports from USA Today say that is simply not true, and there has been no decision either way on what will be done with the statue quite yet. 

So the question remains, what will be done with the statue?

I think we have to ask ourselves, what will removing the statue do? Before anyone does anything else, just ask yourself that question. Will everything go away? Will Paterno be forgotten forever? Will those children no longer suffer from the horrifying abuse they suffered over the years?

I am in no way, shape or form sticking up for Paterno or any of the actions that took place. I think this program deserves the death penalty and everything else that may possibly comes its way. But again, what will removing the statue do exactly?

If it wasn't for Paterno, Penn State would be nowhere close to what it is today. He won two national championships and three Big Ten titles and set college football records with 409 overall wins and 24 bowl victories. Of course, those numbers and accomplishments mean little today, but still, he is this university, as he is the reason Penn State is Penn State.

If we get rid of the statute, what else is going to happen? Do we blow up Beaver Stadium? Do we remove Paterno from the College Football Hall of Fame? Where does it stop, and if the answer to some of those questions is no, then why not?

“You can’t let people stampede you into making a rash decision,” a Penn State trustee said (via CollegeFootballTalk.com). “The statue represents the good that Joe did. It doesn’t represent the bad that he did.”

While it may be hard to remember, Paterno did a lot of good for this university and will never be forgotten for his accomplishments, regardless of what took place with Sandusky and the lack of concern for those children.

We knew the wonderful side of Paterno, the side that everybody grew to love over the years, and we know now the dark side that he hid from us until now.

Statue or no statue.