O'Brien takes reins at Penn State

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Bill O'Brien officially took the reins Saturday of a Penn State football program racked by a child sexual-abuse scandal that resulted in the downfall of one of the most iconic of college football coaches.

And it didn't take long before O'Brien reached out to former players and alumni angry about the length and secretive nature of the selection process, upset that Tom Bradley or someone else with a Penn State pedigree wasn't hired, and disgusted over the way Joe Paterno was fired - with a letter from the board of trustees - on Nov. 9.

O'Brien, 42, who will continue as offensive coordinator of the New England Patriots as long as they last in the NFL playoffs, signed a five-year contract worth $2.5 million the first year. The deal includes base compensation of $950,000 that increases by 5 percent per year, $1 million annually from radio and television, $350,000 from Nike, and up to $200,000 in performance incentives.

Acting athletic director Dave Joyner said O'Brien, who has no prior head coaching experience, was the first choice of the search committee. News of the hiring was leaked Thursday in an ESPN.com report, 39 days after the committee was created. The decision was unanimous, Joyner said.

But O'Brien entered a packed ballroom at the Nittany Lion Inn aware that his hiring had created a firestorm, so he closed his introductory remarks by revealing he had composed a letter to former Penn State players "to get this football family moving in the right direction . . . bring all the different sides together."

The letter expressed respect for the players' opinions and admiration for their loyalty and said they would always be a welcome part of the program.

Paterno, the winningest head coach in NCAA major-college history, hasn't received much praise since the board of trustees decided he didn't do enough after being told in 2002 of an alleged sexual assault of a young boy by former coach Jerry Sandusky. But O'Brien chose to honor Paterno and perhaps further assuage critics of his hiring.

"There's only one Joe Paterno," he said. "What I'm going to try to do is be Bill O'Brien, and we're going to do the best we can to continue the success that he's had here. We're going to show respect for Coach Paterno and what he did here. We're going to move forward to a new era of Penn State football, and hopefully he's proud of it."

Former Penn State players such as linebacker LaVar Arrington and Brandon Short were critical of the selection process and the decision not to hire Bradley, who served as interim head coach the final four games of the season.

However, linebacker Sean Lee, with the Dallas Cowboys, echoed the sentiments of what seemed like a majority of the ex-players who "had hoped an assistant coach from the prior staff would be appointed head coach because we felt it would help preserve the tradition built by Coach Paterno.

"As of today, we need to consider [O'Brien] a Penn Stater," Lee's statement continued. "Alumni, current players, and students need to rally around him and try to help him be as successful as possible. Instead of turning our backs on him, we need to embrace him and help him understand the Penn State way."

Another concern is recruiting. O'Brien will spend Friday - the first day of the final open recruiting period before national signing day on Feb. 1 - helping the Patriots prepare for their initial playoff game. He said he will be on the phone during breaks, joking: "There's not going to be a lot of sleep over the next two or three weeks."

O'Brien announced he has retained defensive line coach Larry Johnson, who just completed his 16th year at Penn State, from Bradley's staff to "guide us through the recruiting process."

O'Brien, who spent 14 years in college coaching before New England hired him, again has to take an NCAA recruiting test before he can contact players. He said he hopes to have a staff in place in a few days to keep recruiting under way. Penn State has 13 commitments, down from 16 before the scandal broke.

"We've got to make sure we secure the guys that are committed right now," he said. "We also have to get out in the middle-Atlantic states, our bloodlines - Pennsylvania, Maryland, D.C., Ohio - and make sure that our coaches are in those high schools getting to know those coaches and talk to them about the direction of the Penn State football program now."

O'Brien said he scheduled meetings with members of the current coaching staff Saturday night and Sunday.

As for Bradley, who is not expected to return, he issued a statement Saturday thanking players, coaches, officials, and fans for their support, and added: "I wish Coach O'Brien all the best.

"No matter the challenges that the university may face, Penn State will always have my support," said Bradley, who spent 37 years there as a player and coach. "This is forever my home and forever my family. It is important that we come together to support our players and our university."