Penn State football Coach Joe Paterno will be honored with the 2011 NCAA President’s Gerald R. Ford Award on Jan. 13, the university announced Wednesday.
The president of the NCAA, Mark Emmert, is expected to present Paterno with the award at the NCAA Convention in San Antonio, Texas.
In a prepared statement, Emmert lauded Paterno’s “‘total-person’ approach to student-athletes, emphasizing athletics and personal accountability.”
“Coach Paterno has distinguished himself to the world by his wins on the field, but he has endeared himself to thousands of student-athletes who have learned through his leadership that success in the classroom and in life is the greatest accomplishment,” Emmert went on. “For me, Coach Paterno is the definitive model of what it means to be a college coach.”
Paterno has been head coach of Penn State football for 45 years. Before that, he was an assistant to former head Coach Rip Engle for 16 years.
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