In his usual reticent manner, Joe Paterno told the media on Wednesday that he did not really have any answers as to how the football team will look in the fall.

Paterno said, “I think this press conference is ridiculous.”

He did tell the media almost apologetically that the reason that he could not give any information was because he and his staff still do not know who will fill in at certain positions. In fact, the only positions that seem certain right now are center, place kicker, and running back.

Paterno did give some information out, including that Drew Astorino is banged up and that Brandon Beachum will not do any work this spring due to his knee injury sustained last fall. He also said that he is looking at Chaz Powell on defense and that punting is a high priority this off-season.

“We’ve got to do better on punt coverage,” he said.

The questions most asked at the press conference were about the linebacker core and who would be the new quarterback. Paterno said that, while the starters for linebacker are not known yet, “I think we’re in pretty good shape there.”

The quarterback story is a different issue entirely. Paterno said that Kevin Newsome has made good progress, but he would not rule out any of the other prospects. He expressed a worry about leadership and mentioned the fact that the new quarterback will be facing tough circumstances during away games at Alabama, Ohio State, and Iowa next season.

In all, many of the issues with the football team still have not yet been fixed. Paterno and his staff have only had a few practices with the players and will need many more before making final decisions. Paterno stressed the fact that he and his staff were going into the off-season without any preconceived notions and were ready for anything.

“I’m not sure what’s going to happen yet,” Paterno said, “we’re just trying to get a feel for the team.”

[Pic]