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Jay Paterno suing Penn State

He and another former assistant football coach are suing over they were dismissed after the Sandusky scandal broke.

STATE COLLEGE - Jay Paterno and another former assistant football coach at Penn State are suing the university over how they were dismissed from the staff when Bill O'Brien was hired as head coach 2 years ago.

Paterno and William Kenney filed a lawsuit Monday in Philadelphia federal court that seeks more than $1 million.

Both served under Paterno's father, Joe Paterno, before he was fired soon after retired assistant coach Jerry Sandusky was charged with child molestation in late 2011.

The coaches say they've been unfairly linked to the Sandusky scandal, making it difficult to find comparable coaching jobs.

Paterno had just completed his 17th season on the Nittany Lions' staff - he most recently served as quarterbacks coach - and Kenney was in his 24th, mostly coaching offensive linemen.

The suit notes that none of the assistant coaches from the 2011 season - only two were retained - was connected to wrongdoing in the Sandusky saga. It alleges "Penn State terminated each of them at the height of the Sandusky Scandal's dark shroud and without any attempt whatsoever by Penn State to preserve the reputations of these guiltless individuals.''

Kenney is now an assistant at Western Michigan. Paterno is a writer and consultant.

A Penn State spokeswoman says it's common for head coaches to pick their own assistants but isn't offering more comment.