WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 21: Anthony Scaramucci answers reporters’ questions during the daily White House press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House July 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer quit after it was announced that Trump hired Scaramucci, a Wall Street financier and longtime supporter, to the position of White House communications director. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
NCAABy Kevin McGuire on

To say there is a lot of tension coming out of the nation’s capital on the political stage lately would be an understatement. Keeping up with everything going on is a constant challenge that keeps adding more hurdles every day.

Among the many issues to flow out of the White House has been a recent power struggle between the new communications director Anthony Scaramucci and President Donald Trump’s chief of staff Reince Priebus. On Thursday morning, that drama played out with a bizarre phone call into CNN’s morning new show, on which Scaramucci wanted to chime in to set a few things straight.

We know you are not here for our political commentary, but Scaramucci caught our eye when he made an awkward reference to Joe Paterno. When going back and forth with CNN morning host Chris Cuomo, Scaramucci stressed the importance of honor in covering politics, specifically mentioning the former Penn State head coach by name when explaining his stance on acting responsibly.

Oh my. That will make you stop to think a little bit.

The reference to “acting like you’ve been there before” is definitely a play out of the Joe Paterno coaching guide, with the quote is more commonly attributed to Vince Lombardi. But Scaramucci was born in 1964 and is a native from Long Island, so it is not a stretch to think he may actually connect the coaching philosophy more to Paterno than Lombardi.

But maybe politicians should stick to politics.

By now you likely do not need a reminder about the complicated and divisive legacy of Paterno. Paterno was linked to the Jerry Sandusky scandal at Penn State for his apparent lack of action in preventing Sandusky from victimizing children with his sickening acts of sexual misconduct. Paterno was fired by Penn State in the days following the release of a grand jury presentment on the Sandusky scandal, and he passed away the following January. When the NCAA dropped a hammer on the entire football program following the release of the Freeh Report’s findings, the famous statue of Paterno outside Beaver Stadium was torn down. To this day, Paterno’s legacy remains a debating point that will likely never see much middle ground between those who would burn him at the stake and those who will cherish him for decades.

Coincidentally enough, this is not the first time a bizarre Paterno reference has come from the Trump camp.

When President Trump was campaigning last year prior to the election, he dropped an odd Paterno reference at a campaign rally in Pittsburgh and asked about the statue.

Yeah, about that…

Anyway, in related news…

About Kevin McGuire

Contributor to Athlon Sports and The Comeback. Previously contributed to NBCSports.com. Host of the Locked On Nittany Lions Podcast. FWAA member and Philadelphia-area resident.

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