A Paterno coaching for Ohio State? Well, that would surely go over well.
Jay Paterno, the son of the late Joe Paterno and a former Penn State assistant coach, wrote a letter to Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer last year. In it, the younger Paterno said it would be an honor to coach as a member of Meyer’s staff in Columbus. The letter was among the documents released Monday as part of the ongoing lawsuit between the Paterno family and the NCAA. The letter is dated December 23, 2014, placing it between Ohio State’s run to grab a spot in the first College Football Playoff and its first game in the Sugar Bowl semifinal against Alabama. Paterno congratulated Meyer on Ohio State’s Big Ten championship run, which included an overtime road victory at Penn State along the way.
“This note is also to express my interest in any coaching positions that have opened and may open on your staff in the future,” Paterno wrote, according to a report from The Patriot News. “My father had tremendous respect for you and I share that respect as well. It would be an honor to be a part of your staff.”
“For you [sic] Ohio State -- I would bring a diverse set of experiences on and off the field that would be an asset to your program,” Paterno wrote to Meyer. “My career has included success in recruiting, coaching as well as leadership in social media and public relations.”
Meyer was not the only coach to receive a letter about potential work from Paterno. West Virginia’s Dana Holgorsen and Georgia’s Mark Richt reportedly received letters from Paterno. Paterno has not coached since the end of the 2011 season. Paterno was not included in the coaching staff assembled at Penn State by Bill O’Brien following the dismissal of Joe Paterno the previous November in the fallout of the Jerry Sandusky bombshell in State College. Jay Paterno has continued to fight in defense of his father’s legacy, and has even gone to length to craft a new beer bearing his father’s likeness on the can.