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Getting to know Paterno was a pleasure BEHIND THE DESK BARRY ALVAREZ • UW DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS fter I retired from coaching, Joe Paterno wanted to sit down and talk. He thought maybe we could get together for dinner at his house when our bas- ketball teams played at Penn State. We never did get that chance to sit down because of our schedules. But I remember him telling me, "Barry, I'm afraid to retire. All I think about is Bear Bryant when he retired. That's all I think about.'' A month after retiring, Bryant died from a heart attack. Someone texted me Sunday — after Pater- no's passing — and reminded me, "Joe said this was going to hap- pen.'' A It has been well-documented how he didn't have any hobbies. He told me, "I've got all these grandkids and I can go watch them play Little League.'' And then he laughed and said, "But I can't handle 14 walks in an inning.'' I had a nice relationship with Joe Paterno. He always had time for me. During my first year as a Big Ten coach, I had an opportunity to visit with him. Growing up in western Pennsylvania, I always respected what he meant to the game. So I asked him if he had any sug- gestions for a new head coach. "You've played for one of the best, Bob Devaney,'' he said. "You've worked for two of the best, Hayden Fry and Lou Holtz. "Take the lessons you've learned from them — because those guys 12 » VARSITY JANUARY 26, 2012 know how to win — and apply it to what you're doing at Wisconsin.'' I asked him, too, how he had survived as a head coach for all those years in Pennsylvania. Foot- ball is so important for the people in the state that they take it to a different level. Everybody thinks they know ev- erything there is to know about the I always respected Joe's openness, his candor. He was a very intelli- gent man who always had an opinion. There was some pretty good banter in those Big Ten meetings. game. Everyone has an opinion on how the game should be played. So how had he survived so long? He said that he'd tell his good supporters, "You've entrusted me with this job. Now you have to trust me. I need your support, particu- larly your financial support. I don't need your advice. "Don't tell me what plays to call and who to play. "Support me … and I do need your money.'' I always remembered that. We always had fun with each other. People would ask Paterno why he didn't recruit me, and he would say, "Because Alvarez was a fat (bleep) and he was too slow.'' Any time we beat Penn State, it was very gratifying for me because of my roots in Pennsylvania and my family and friends in Burgettstown and Langeloth. It meant bragging rights for a year. I respected the type of football that Penn State played. Joe recruit- ed tough kids. I always felt like he did it the right way. Academics were not compromised for athletics. When you meet Penn State guys, they are legitimate. There's no question he left his mark on them. They had to go to school and he was going to stay on top of them about being a gentleman and car- rying themselves the right way. He made them do things right. Joe took pride in not being flashy; especially wearing those black shoes because he felt wearing white shoes made you look faster. I did just the opposite. I wanted to look faster because we were slow. I always respected Joe's open- ness, his candor. He was a very intelligent man who always had an opinion about something. There was some pretty good banter in those Big Ten meetings. You didn't always agree with him, but you respected that he had an opinion. I've always likened what he did to what Knute Rockne did at Notre Dame. Joe Paterno put Penn State on the map.