Every time Penn State loses this year, yet another national sports writer seems to wonder if it is time for Joe Paterno to hang it up. They all say the same sort of thing. For what he has done for Penn State both on and off the field, he deserves the right to say when he’s done (of course this is followed by the inevitable) but…

Let me say it then. Joe Paterno should stay as long as he wants to. If he stays too long, and drags the Penn State program down, so that it takes years or even a decade or so to recover; well, then, so be it. Joe Paterno has earned that right. He built that program, he should be able to take it down.

If Paterno drags Penn State to the point where it ends up like Alabama some 20 years after Bear Bryant retired, well, he’s earned that right.

I mean this latest incident about the DUI for a Penn State player, and Joe Paterno’s comments are getting taken way too far. There is no need for Jim Rome to refer to Paterno’s comments as “senile rantings” (or something like that) [subscription only for the streaming audio — windows or real].

More respect needs to be shown to Joe Paterno. It just isn’t right to call him an idiot, senile, moron, jerk, hypocrite, and such. There’s just no call for that. It isn’t nice. We all must be nice to Joe. He needs us. All of us. Lay off the guy.