Penn State Basketball: Pat Chambers Reflects on Paterno Viewing

Fewer than 24 hours away from its match-up against Ohio State, Pat Chambers made sure his team stopped and paid respects to Joe Paterno on Tuesday night.

“No question,” Chambers said when asked if he thought it was important to bring his team to the viewing. “You don’t know him like people who were close to him his whole life, but you felt like you knew him. Some players crying; some assistants crying; it’s an emotional time.”

“The passion and the love that he gave — you want to give it back to him,” Chambers went on. “That’s why I felt it was important that our team give our respect to him.”

Asked about Paterno’s impact over the years, Chambers responded with a smile.

“I’d love to say I impacted people as long as he did over 60-plus years, but I don’t know in this day and age if I’ll make it (that long),” Chambers said, laughing. “But you can only hope to emulate what he has meant to so many people.”

A second public viewing is scheduled for 8 a.m. to noon Wednesday. A private funeral service will follow.

At roughly 3 p.m. Wednesday, a funeral procession will leave the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center and travel Curtin Road past Beaver Stadium. The procession will then turn right onto Porter Road and right onto College Avenue, heading west through downtown State College.

The burial will be private.

Related content

• StateCollege.com’s Joe Paterno news page