Former players from Hampton Roads remember Paterno

Terrell Golden began to hear Saturday that former Penn State coach Joe Paterno was near death.

"It had me pretty down," said Golden, who played at Penn State from 2003-07 and served as a graduate assistant coach for Paterno the past three seasons.

Golden awoke Sunday morning and was headed to work when another graduate assistant coach told him Paterno had died that morning.

"It was one of those things where you want to stop what you're doing and take some time for yourself, but at the same time all I could really hear was him saying, 'Don't make a fuss over me, go and do your job,'" said Golden, imitating Paterno's voice. "He wouldn't want that. So it was with a heavy heart that I continued because that's what he would have wanted."

Paterno, who won more games than any other major college football coach during his 46 years as Penn State's head coach, was diagnosed with lung cancer in November - shortly after he was fired amid a child sexual-abuse scandal involving former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.

Golden, a former All-Tidewater player from Lake Taylor, said it was still hard to imagine that Paterno had died, even as thousands of well-wishers paid their respects. The viewing began Tuesday and continues today at Penn State's Pasquerilla Spiritual Center and will be followed by a private funeral. The public memorial, scheduled for Thursday at the Jordan Center, is expected to draw thousands.

At the viewing, one letterman and one current player stood on guard at all times as the public paid its respects.

Among the players selected to stand guard Tuesday morning was lineman Chima Okoli, who played at Salem High in Virginia Beach.

"It still doesn't seem real because he's always been a part of what we do," Okoli said. "And for him not to be here, it's a sad day for Penn State; it's a sad day for college football."

Okoli last saw his former coach a few weeks ago. "He said to me that we were 'teammates forever,'" Okoli said, "and no matter what happened our bond won't be broken."

Okoli said he'll remember Paterno as a man who always tried to instill a good work ethic.

"He told us to always look presentable and be prepared for success before it actually happens," said Okoli, who earned two degrees and remains at the school in preparation for Penn State's pro day in March. "That way it's not a surprise when it happens because you worked for it."

Okoli, 22, recalled how Paterno handled the scandal and his Nov. 9 firing.

"Even through the adversity we had this year, Joe was steadfast," he said. "He never wavered or buckled under pressure. That's definitely what you need in a leader."

Golden, 27, said he last saw Paterno in November and will remember Paterno as a man who touched his life.

"I had some time to reflect and I thought about all that I've been able to accomplish in my life and I realize this man saw something in me and impacted my life," he said. "And then I thought about how many others' lives he's impacted in his more than 60 years as a coach. As much as you might not like some of the things he did, Joe made you a better man. Not so much a better football player, but a better person."

Larry Rubama, 757-446-2273,larry.rubama@pilotonline.com