JoePa Plans to Coach After Surgery

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - November 6, 2006 -- Forget about moving the football. Moving around Beaver Stadium on a surgically repaired left leg will be something entirely new in the storied career of Joe Paterno.

Penn State's feisty 79-year-old head coach was listed in good condition Monday at Mount Nittany Medical Center following an 80-minute procedure on Sunday to fix a fractured tibia, or shin bone, and two knee ligaments torn in a sideline collision during last week's loss to Wisconsin.

Team doctor Wayne Sebastianelli said Paterno was expected to make a full recovery after several screws were inserted into the injured leg, which was also fitted with a temporary brace. Paterno might be able to put weight back on the leg in about six weeks.

Just in time for a New Year's Day bowl game, which the Nittany Lions (6-4, 4-3 Big Ten) would likely wrap up if they can win their last two games of the season.

No wonder Paterno, who turns 80 next month, is raring to get back with his team on Saturday when Penn State hosts Temple. The school said Paterno is expected to coach on Saturday, though it's unclear whether that means from the sidelines or from a coach's box.

The injury didn't keep Paterno from catching up on work - Paterno's son and quarterbacks coach, Jay, said his father was already reviewing scouting reports and game plans from his hospital bed on Monday. Paterno was expected to remain in the hospital through Tuesday, assistant athletic director Jeff Nelson said.

"He woke up today and asked for the second phase of the game plan and scouting reports on Temple. He's been on the phone all day," said Guido D'Elia, director of communications for football. "He's still in charge."

The school canceled Paterno's regular Tuesday news conference at Beaver Stadium. Another news conference was scheduled for Wednesday with Sebastianelli, and it was unclear whether Paterno would be available then.

Saturday appears to be a done deal though, but don't expect a vintage Paterno pacing the sidelines in a blue Penn State jacket and rolled-up khakis. The school said in a statement that there was a "mobility plan" to make Paterno available for team activities on and off the field, though the exact details haven't been determined.

One football staffer had mentioned a golf cart as a possibility to get around on the sidelines. D'Elia talked about a "super-cart" or "souped-up scooter" as a possible long-term transportation device.

Or might Paterno, who stubbornly tried to shoo away help initially after he was injured, try walking on crutches?

Such are the questions buzzing around the football team now at Penn State, where even the left leg on the statue in his honor outside Beaver Stadium has been wrapped with a bandage.

Paterno is in his 41st year as Penn State head coach and under contract through the end of 2008. Only Amos Alonzo Stagg coached as long with one school, leading the University of Chicago from 1892 to 1932.

Paterno's 360 career wins are second among major college coaches to the 364 of Florida State's Bobby Bowden.

The Penn State coach went down last weekend after Nittany Lion tight end Andrew Quarless and Wisconsin linebacker DeAndre Levy ran into him on the sidelines. Replays showed Levy colliding helmet-first with Paterno's left leg after falling while trying to tackle Quarless.

The injury overshadows the Happy Valley homecoming of Temple head coach Al Golden, one of four Penn State alums on the Owl football staff. Golden played tight end at Penn State from 1987-91 and served as linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator under Paterno in 2000.

"I told some of my players the other day, 'This guy is 80 years old.' He didn't want to leave the field," Golden said Monday. "That's tough, now. We need some of those players on our team."

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