Is Joe Paterno Ready to Call It Quits?

Is Joe Paterno's final home game as Penn State coach a little more than a week away?

Speculation continues that the legendary coach has had enough, his 84-year-old body battered daily by aches and pains. Physically, Paterno can't do the job anymore, and he spends little time on the field on game day, instead opting for a seat in the press box where he wears no headphones and doesn't call plays.

There's certainly nothing left to accomplish in football. Last Saturday, Paterno passed Eddie Robinson as the all-time wins leader in Division I with his 409th victory. He won't catch all-time wins leader John Gagliardi of Division III St. John's (Minn), who remains active and is college football's all-time leader with 482 victories.

Adding to the speculation is that Paterno's contract is up at the end of the season and there hasn't been any discussion — at least publicly — about an extension.

Paterno has long maintained that he wanted to go out with little fanfare and perhaps administrators are merely letting this play out according to Paterno's wishes. The Nittany Lions are 8-1 and the only team in the Big Ten without a conference loss, so Paterno's final season — like so many others — would be a memorable one.

It sets up the possibility that the Nov. 12 game against Nebraska will be Paterno's last at Beaver Stadium. After that, the Nittany Lions play at Ohio State and Wisconsin to finish the regular-season schedule. If they can hold on to their lead in the Leaders Division, the team would play in the Big Ten title game on Dec. 3 in Indianapolis. Then a bowl game and perhaps, the end of Paterno's legendary career.

Thanks to 30fps.