Lydell Mitchell taking Penn State scandal hard

Lydell Mitchell wasn't going to sign with Penn State in 1968.

He preferred Michigan State and Ohio State, Syracuse and Maryland.

The Nittany Lions "weren't one of my top choices," Mitchell said.

Then Joe Paterno made the trip from State College, Pa., to tiny Salem, N.J., to meet with the high school running back.

"Joe Paterno challenged me to attend Penn State," Mitchell said. And that meeting, he said, changed his life.

One of the best players in Penn State history, the 61-year-old Mitchell is struggling to deal with the fallout from the scandal that has rocked his alma mater and cost Paterno his job as head football coach.

"It's like a blow to the stomach," Mitchell said. "It knocks the wind out of you. It's just devastating to me and so many players who played for Joe and thousands of students."

Mitchell said he doesn't want to downplay the suffering of the victims of alleged sexual abuse by former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.

But Mitchell said he remains steadfast in his support of Paterno.

"I adore Joe Paterno," Mitchell said. "We all love Joe Paterno. This man has had more influence on my life than any male that I've ever come into contact with. This is traumatizing to me to see what has happened to him and his family.

"I tell people that I don't want to make light of the victims. I know how important that is.

"But for a man like Joe Paterno to walk the sidelines for 60 years and have such a clean reputation and such a great legacy and have it all taken away in one swoop, it's just hard for me to accept that."

Mitchell compared Paterno's situation to that of former Ohio State coach Woody Hayes, who was fired after punching a player on the sideline during a bowl game.

"Woody Hayes was a great football coach," Mitchell said. "But now all anybody remembers is what happened at the end and how he left the game. I don't want to see that happen to Joe Paterno.

"He's meant too much to me. He's meant too much to too many people."

Mitchell teamed with another South Jersey star running back, Rancocas Valley graduate Franco Harris, to lead Penn State to a 29-4 record and a pair of bowl victories from 1969 to 1971.

Mitchell averaged 5.5 yards per carry as a sophomore for an 11-0 team in 1969. He scored the only touchdown in a 10-3 victory over Missouri in the Orange Bowl.

As a senior, Mitchell ran for 1,567 yards and scored 29 touchdowns, a Division I record that stood for 17 years. He was named the most outstanding offensive player in the Cotton Bowl as Penn State beat Texas, 30-8, to finish an 11-1 season.

Mitchell played nine years in the NFL. He was a three-time Pro Bowl player for the Baltimore Colts in the mid-1970s and finished his career with 6,534 rushing yards and 47 touchdowns (rushing and receiving).

Mitchell lives in Baltimore. He and Harris are partners in a business, Super Bakery, that produces healthy foods for schools and youth organizations.

Mitchell said he has stayed in contact with Paterno over the years and plans to visit the 84-year-old former coach next week.

"I don't know what I can say to him," Mitchell said. "I can't say, 'I know how you feel.' I can't say, 'How are you doing?' I know how he's doing: Not well.

"I just want to tell him that I'm praying for him and that I hope that when this all is over that something good comes out of this for him and his family."