Only Nate understands the emotions that he has expressed. We are individuals and entitled to those feelings. As an older poster, I can tell you that my first PSU game was 1966. I went to the Outback Bowl in 2010-11. I am a big fan of JF. My niece went to High School with him and they remain good friends. But, while I will always be a Penn State Football fan, it does not have the "juice" for me as before. The new traditions will be for the younger generations, as it should be. Change is harder to accept as you get older. If you can understand that and combine that with the bullshit they pulled on Joe it makes sense. It doesn't make us anti PSU Football, just on a different level at this point in our lives.
But my point is, no matter how Joe left, things were going to change. For a fanbase that hadn't known change in decades. Every other fanbase has been through coaching changes, and often frequently.
Sandusky could have not happened, Joe would have been celebrated and honored, and many people would still be comparing the new coach to Joe, complaining about tattoos and longer hair and how it's not like the good old days, how they miss Joe, and on and on and on. We as a fanbase were going to have to deal with this no matter what. Did the BOT actions make it worse? No doubt, for some people. But anyone who thought things were going to be smooth sailing when Joe left were mistaken.
People that are in this situation, may want to consider this. And I say it as someone who's been a fan since 1984. We had a very special situation, for a very long time. We should celebrate that, embrace it, cherish it, but realize it wasn't going to last forever. But also it doesn't have to mean the end. Things don't have to stay 100% the same to continue on. The values that Joe held continue on, not only in the football program, but the athletic department. Success with honor. Student athletes. I don't see that changing. We seem to have a team of students who study, who do community work, who stay out of trouble for the most part, are well spoken and represent themselves and the university well... they honor Joe every day when they continue that tradition. Yeah, the competition hasn't been up to snuff, but that will change in a couple of years--the recruiting has improved. We were supposed to be left for dead. We're far from it. And at a time when the program needs our support to get through this and get back to where we want it to be on the field, we have fans whining because it's not the same. The core values are the same, if you can't support that... were you a fan of graduating football players and competing at a high level, or were you a fan of short hair, no sleeve tattoos, and assistant coaches who never left (even the ones who needed to go)?
Some people like to play WWJD (What Would Joe Do) when it comes to coaching decisions, and how the program is being run... or rather, in the scheme of things, minor team rules changes. Or coaches on, shudder, social media. But when it comes to their own actions, they don't ask WWJD. Would Joe want us to stop supporting the players, and coaches, who are upholding the core values of the program, because he's no longer there and things are not 100% the same anymore? Would Joe want the actions of the BOT to ruin our love for the university, and the program? Would Joe want us to care more about his reputation than we care about the players and coaches in the program now? I think we all know the answers to those questions.
That's not to say we shouldn't care about setting the record straight, or uncovering what happened, or expressing our displeasure with what happened. But theres a time and place and method to do so. And it doesn't have to come at the expense of continuing to support the coaches and players we have who are following in the tradition and foundation that Joe laid. And it doesn't have to come at the expense of OUR enjoyment of the program, and OUR love for the university. Because if it does, then they've won, and Joe lost.
Sorry for the rant.
