Paterno losing member of his doghouse

It looks as if one of the regular inhabitants of Joe Paterno's doghouse is leaving Penn State.

Defensive tackle Brandon Ware, whom Paterno often took to task for his weight and his approach to academics, told the Harrisburg Patriot-News that he will transfer for "personal reasons."

Ware, who would have been a redshirt junior in the fall, said he didn't know where he would relocate but told the Patriot-News in a text message that he'd "most likely" have to transfer down to a lower-level program so he wouldn't have to sit out a season.

The Penn State-based web site Lions 247 had reported that Ware would have to sit out the 2011 season for academic reasons. Ware did not comment about his academic status to the Patriot-News.

Ware, who graduated from Harrisburg High School, redshirted his freshman season of 2008 and played sparingly in 2009 and 2010. He suffered a broken foot early in the 2009 season. He mostly played on the third team last season.

Paterno frequently was critical of Ware's weight, which at times exceeded 350 pounds. Ware's weight currently is listed at 337 but the veteran Penn State coach managed to praise Ware last month for his conditioning and his class work.

"He's doing really well. He had a good semester academically, and the player's got ability,'' Paterno said' "He's 320 pounds now, and he was 340, 350. We got him down by 20 pounds. He moves well, and he's got everything. He's going to be a really good football player. His problem again is academic.''

--Joe Juliano