Mo Money Mo Problems!

"Look what JoePa left on the table!"

Have you ever met someone that just seemed to be in a fog all of the time? They're walking, talking and breathing but for some reason they just aren't in the same room as everybody else. That's how I feel about Joe Paterno (JoePa). He's even got his own theme music. It's the O'Jays 1982 hit "Your Body's Here With Me" but your mind is on the other side of town.

Penn State has completely taken advantage of the old guy over the years and it's a shame. They've kept him around for decades as the figure head and paid him peanuts relative to what big time college football coaches are paid. According to an Associated Press analysis of state public pension records JoePa's pension will be more than $500,000 a year because of his long service at the university. That's sound great on the surface but they were ripping the old timer off in his annual salary.

Paterno's pension records obtained Tuesday from the State Employees' Retirement System credit him with more than 60 years in the system. The formula used to determine benefits makes him eligible for a pension equal to 100 percent of the average of his three highest-salary years. However, his salary only rose from $541,000 to $568,000 over the past three full calendar years. Man that's highway robbery in this day and age. After 60 years on the job (as a big time coach) he was only making $568,000? Are you kidding me?

JoePa had no idea what coaches were making but Penn State definitely knew what the fair market value was. That's why they kept him around for so long because he was clueless.

Here is the list of the top ten college football coaches and their respective salaries as compiled after the 2010 college football season:
Nick Saban, University of Alabama: $5.9 million
Mack Brown, University of Texas: $5.1 million
Bob Stoops, University of Oklahoma: $4.3 million
Urban Meyer, University of Florida (resigned after season): $4 million
Les Miles, Louisiana State University: $3.9 million
Jim Tressel, Ohio State University (resigned after season): $3.8 million
Kirk Ferentz, University of Iowa: $3.7 million
Jim Frobe, Wake Forest University: $2.9 million
Mark Richt, University of Georgia: $2.9 million
Bobby Petrino, University of Arkansas: $2.7 million

If JoePa was the king of State College surely he should have been paid a cool million at the minimum. Even guys like first year head coach Kevin Wilson at Indiana University is getting $1.2 million per year. Keep in mind that they haven't won a conference title since 1967 and they're willing to break bread. For the university to keep him around for 46 years as the head coach and only pay him a half a million bucks is what I call the ultimate jack move.

Whether he asks for the money or not you have to pay the guy if you're going to have him around. Obviously he doesn't need or want it because he's accustomed to living a very modest life style which is evident by looking at his home. However, I believe that he should have been paid what he's worth and let him figure out what to do with it.

JoePa probably didn't even have an agent all of these years because when he started coaching they were shaking hands and giving $1000.00 annual raises. Penn State saw him coming and he kept coming bruh. Now they've got a real dilemma. In order to hire one of these new boyz they’ve got to come out of some serious bread.

Guys are pulling up to the interview now days bumpin' that Puff Daddy "It's All about the Benjamins, Wu-Tang Clan "C.R.E.A.M.", The Notorious B.I.G. "Mo' Money, Mo' Problems", Bone Thugs-N-Harmony "Foe tha Love of $", Junior M.A.F.I.A. “Get Money”, 50 Cent “I Get Money”, The LOX "Money, Power, Respect”, Jay-Z “Money, Cash, .....” and Jermaine Dupri featuring Jay-Z “Money Ain't a Thang” before they even get out of the car!

So if the Nittany Lions think they can roll up on a coach for a half million dollars in 2011 they've got serious problems!

Holla At Ya Boy!
Jay Graves
Twitter:@jaygravesreport