Former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno dies aged 85 Joe Paterno, pictured in 2006, has died at the age of 85. Photograph: Rhona Wise/EPA Joe Paterno, the long-serving Penn State coach whose glittering career in college football was ended by a child sex abuse scandal, has died at the age of 85. In a statement released on Sunday, his family said: "It is with great sadness that we announce that Joe Paterno passed away earlier today. His loss leaves a void in our lives that will never be filled. He died as he lived. He fought hard until the end, stayed positive, thought only of others and constantly reminded everyone of how blessed his life had been. His ambitions were far-reaching, but he never believed he had to leave this Happy Valley to achieve them. He was a man devoted to his family, his university, his players and his community. Paterno, known as JoePa, was one of the most famous college football coaches of all time. He coached Penn State's Nittany Lions for 46 years, winning 409 games and two national championships. More than 250 of the players he coached went on to the National Football League. But his career ended in scandal last year, just after he was named the most successful coach in Division 1 college football. Before the 2011 season was over, Paterno was dismissed, at the age of 84, when it emerged he had ignored signs that his former assistant Jerry Sandusky had allegedly abused children in his care. Thousands of students protested against his sacking, with some clashing with police and attacking the media, tearing down light poles and overturning a television news van. Sandusky - once seen as Paterno's likely successor - was charged with sexually assaulting 10 boys over 15 years. Mike McQueary, a graduate assistant at the time of the alleged attacks, testified that he had seen Sandusky assaulting a child in the showers and had told Paterno, who waited a day before alerting school authorities. The police were never called and the state police commissioner, Frank Noonan, condemned Paterno. "I think you have the moral responsibility - anyone," he said. Not whether you're a football coach or a university president or the guy sweeping the building. I think you have a moral responsibility to call us.. In an interview with Washington Post, the only one he gave after his dismissal, Paterno said: "You know, [McQueary] didn't want to get specific. And to be frank with you I don't know that it would have done any good, because I never heard of, of, rape and a man. So I just did what I thought was best. I talked to people that I thought would be, if there was a problem, that would be following up on it. Last year, it was disclosed that Paterno was being treated for lung cancer. He had been in hospital since 13 January. On Saturday, Onward State, a website affiliated with Penn State, reported Paterno had died, sparking a deluge of online stories and Twitter posts that were later corrected.