Colleges

Paterno emerges, tired of injury talk

The Penn State coach is eager to get past the attention his injury has drawn and get down to business.

By DAVID MURPHY AND JOEY KNIGHT
Published December 29, 2006

TAMPA - Using a gray crutch and hobbling into a hotel ballroom, Joe Paterno looked every bit his 80 years as he made his first official appearance of Outback Bowl week Thursday.

Although he expressed optimism about returning to the sideline, the usually spry Penn State coach continued to bemoan the attention his injury has received.

"I think I'm going to make it for the Outback Bowl on the sideline," said Paterno, who has been relegated to a booth since suffering a broken left leg and ligament damage in a sideline collision Nov. 4 against Wisconsin. "The only thing I don't want to do is, I don't want to be on the sideline where everybody is worried about me, because they've got to play a game."

Paterno has said he is embarrassed at the attention being paid to his injury. And he sounded exasperated Thursday when questioned about his personal relationship with his doctor, saying, "What does that have to do with the game?"

Later, he playfully brandished his crutch as a line of cameras attempted to capture a shot of his condition.

"I've got to be able to handle myself," he said, "and we're working on that."

TWO MEN OUT: Former blue-chip running back Austin Scott, who rushed for 110 yards against Florida State in last season's Orange Bowl, was sent home for what Paterno called "family issues."

Scott, who was one of the most touted recruits in Penn State history after rushing for 3,853 yards as a senior in high school, has had a disappointing career. He rushed for 436 yards as a freshman in 2003 but didn't equal that mark in his sophomore or junior seasons. His performance in the Orange Bowl raised hopes for this season, but he didn't beat out Tony Hunt for the starting job.

Scott plans to redshirt this season and wasn't expected to play against Tennessee.

And Paterno said backup safety Spencer Ridenhour did not make the trip because he violated a team rule.

Penn State isn't imposing a curfew on its players this week, and Tennessee has a curfew set at 1 a.m.

"I tell them, 'If you get in trouble, I'm not going to baby you,' " Paterno said while explaining Ridenhour's suspension.

NO MONTU FOR MEACHEM: Junior Robert Meachem, the Vols' top receiver, didn't set foot on a roller coaster Thursday during the team outing at Busch Gardens.

The Vols' best leaper is scared of heights, albeit for a good reason. "I saw a bad accident one time at an amusement park" in Oklahoma, Meachem said.

"A roller coaster kind of came off the track and killed two people. ... My cousins were about to get on the ride, and I told them, 'Don't get on the ride.' They were next in line to get on the ride."

ODDS AND ENDS: Vols linebacker Jerod Mayo, still nursing a knee injury that kept him out of the regular-season finale, said he's making modest progress. "It's a little sore today, but the first two days it went all right," he said. ... Among the visitors at Tennessee's practice Thursday were former All-American offensive lineman Antone Davis. ... Penn State held its lone open practice of the week at the University of Tampa.

David Murphy can be reached at (352) 848-1407 or dmurphy@sptimes.com Joey Knight can be reached at (813) 226-3350 or jknight@sptimes.com.

[Last modified December 29, 2006, 00:14:40]