Paterno to miss game

November 10, 2006|Associated Press

Heeding his doctor's advice, injured Penn State coach Joe Paterno will not be in the stadium tomorrow when the Nittany Lions play Temple at State College, Pa. -- missing his first game since 1977.

Paterno had surgery Sunday to repair a fractured shinbone and two torn knee ligaments in his left leg. The 79-year-old coach was sent tumbling along the sideline last Saturday by two players in the second half of Penn State's loss to Wisconsin.

Paterno had missed only one game in his 41-year head-coaching career -- after his son, David, was involved in an accident. He also missed one game as an assistant in 1955 after his father died.

Defensive coordinator Tom Bradley and offensive coordinator Galen Hall will oversee their respective units.

But Bradley, a Penn State assistant for 28 years, was assigned to make the tough calls on both sides of the ball.

BYU routs Wyoming John Beck passed for 313 yards and two touchdowns and moved up to second on Brigham Young's career passing list behind Jim McMahon as the No. 25 Cougars clinched a share of their first conference title in five years by beating Wyoming, 55-7, in Provo, Utah. Beck also had two 1-yard TD runs to lead BYU (8-2, 6-0 Mountain West) to its seventh straight win . . . Tom Kelley, who played on Framingham State's first team in 1972, guided the team for three seasons in the mid-1980s, and has served as the college's director of athletics for the last 11 years, is returning as coach. Kelley, 52, replaces Mark Sullivan, whose contract was not renewed after directing the Rams to a 4-41 mark in five seasons.

Craig Larson of the Globe staff contributed to this article.