Column: Old man Joe outlasts another young gun

Paterno is 83 years old — 84 in five days! — and recently announced that he would return for at least one more season. Meyer is 46 years old and made the stunning decision to step down after his team’s bowl game in January. While the official reason for his resignation was to spend time with his family, rumors swirled that his precarious health led to the decision to quit.

You know those pictures of Vince Lombardi with his horn-rimmed glasses and wide nose? Watching Joe Paterno on the sideline is like seeing Lombardi in one of those grainy, classic, old NFL Films videos — except in real life. But as someone who’s been to countless Penn State football games in the past 10 years, it’s also tragic. One of the Nittany Lions’ great traditions was that Joe would lead the team out of the tunnel and run onto the field. But Joe can’t run any more — when I went to a game this year, he was barely able to jog out of the tunnel — and as such, that tradition is gone. After suffering from a ruthless stomach virus all summer, Joe looked for the first time like what he is — an old man.

Of course, to any astute observer, it is clear that Paterno does not really coach the team anymore. In fact, many Penn State fans blame Joe’s refusal to delegate some of his responsibilities to his coordinators for the so-called “dark age” from 2000 to 2004, during which the team appeared in only one bowl game and had four losing seasons.

Today, even a casual observer would notice that he does not call the plays. Have you ever seen Joe wear a headset? Responsibility for play-calling is assigned to the offensive and defensive coordinators, Galen Hall and Tom Bradley, respectively. When Joe doesn’t like what he sees, he yells at wide receivers coach Mike McQueary, who then yells at players or the referees. The only thing guaranteed to rile up Joe Paterno is a fumble, inevitably leading to a player’s quick dressing down by the coach old enough to be his grandfather. After every win, no matter how big, in the postgame press conference Joe inevitably says something like, “Eh, you know, [insert team here] is a good football team. They make a few plays, we lose this game.” Joe hasn’t been on a recruiting trip to a player’s house since he tried to woo current Ohio State star Terrelle Pryor in 2008.

The second, Urban Meyer, is the consummate modern college football coach. He did his duty as an assistant at Ohio State, Colorado State and Notre Dame, and then he was head coach at Bowling Green in 2001 and 2002 and at Utah in 2003 and 2004. After an undefeated season at Utah in 2004, he followed in the path of many of today’s best coaches, moving up to the job at Florida, a traditional power in the traditionally powerful Southeastern Conference. (Joe Paterno has literally coached nowhere else but Penn State. Can you believe that?) By all accounts, Meyer is a great recruiter, bringing in tons of talent to the Gators. He pioneered the spread offense, winning two national championships in three years.

But the stress of coaching Florida obviously wore on Meyer, as he began to suffer chest pains and severe headaches due to stress. The modern college football coach must work year-round, preparing game plans in the fall, recruiting high schoolers in the winter, overseeing spring practices and summer workouts, and for Meyer it was not a sustainable lifestyle.

The two coaches will meet on New Year’s Day in the Outback Bowl, in what has to be one of the most fascinating matchup of 7-5 teams in a long time, mainly because of the two coaches involved.

Meyer’s situation shows why Paterno’s greatest accomplishment — his win record, currently at 401 and counting— is so impressive and why it will likely never be challenged. You have to be around and good for a long time: 40 10-win seasons are needed to equal it. The stresses put on today’s coaches makes it highly unlikely that they will be coaching at age 84.

Even more secure is the fact that Joe Paterno never switched teams — that all 401 wins were with one team, Penn State. In today’s era of mercenary coaches, no one stays with one team for very long — they jump to a team that will give them more money. For reference, in 2007, Meyer made approximately $3.25 million; Joe Paterno made only about $500,000.

It’s the ultimate matchup of old versus young. And how can you not root for the old, wizened Paterno to eke out one more bowl win?