Former Penn State Coach Joe Paterno dies at 85

Joseph Vincent Paterno has died at a State College hospital at the age of 85, just over two months after being diagnosed with a form of lung cancer. He was the former Penn State Head coach of the football team and coached for almost five decades.

Paterno was born Dec. 21, 1926, in Brooklyn, NY. A family spokesperson confirmed his death early on Sunday morning to the Associated Press.

Paterno's lung cancer was revealed by his family on November 18, just nine days after he was fired by the university's board of trustees during the sexual-abuse scandal that was revealed following the prosecution of Paterno’s former assistant Jerry Sandusky on November 5th.

NBC News reported that continued chemotherapy treatments had created complications for Paterno that resulted in his going back into the hospital eight days ago.

The man known as “JoePa” won 409 games and took the Nittany Lions to 37 bowl games and two national championships. More than 250 of the players he coached went on to the NFL.

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sourced by Emily Sutherlin