Penn State is honoring the legacy of the late Joe Paterno with a new exhibit in the school’s on-campus sports museum dedicated to his nearly half-century as head coach of the Nittany Lions, a tenure that ended abruptly amid the Jerry Sandusky scandal.

The school announced the opening of the Paterno Family Football Experience Room on Monday.

The Paterno Family Football Experience Room, an interactive collection, honoring the history and tradition of Penn State Football, is coming to Beaver Stadium. #WeAre | https://t.co/UzaMFhhrmK pic.twitter.com/O6lyBjSoPT

— Penn State Athletics (@GoPSUsports) September 1, 2026

“Penn State Football’s history belongs to generations of student-athletes, coaches, staff and supporters who helped build this program,” athletic director Pat Kraft said in a statement. “This room gives us an opportunity to preserve that history, present it thoughtfully and create an experience that connects the proud tradition of Penn State Football with its future.”

The Penn State All-Sports Museum is located in Beaver Stadium in State College, Pa. A statue of Paterno, the winningest coach in major college football history, stood outside the stadium for years but was removed in July of 2012.

The removal came seven months after Sandusky, a longtime assistant coach under Paterno, was arrested and charged with dozens of counts of child sexual abuse. Sandusky’s arrest in November of 2011 led to Paterno being fired after 46 years leading Penn State. Sandusky, now 82, was convicted in 2012 and is currently serving a minimum sentence of 30 years in prison. One of Sandusky’s accusers is scheduled to appear in court next week to recant his testimony from the trial, according to court documents.

Paterno, a College Football Hall of Famer, won two national championships and 409 games as head coach of the Nittany Lions. He also spent 16 seasons as an assistant coach in Happy Valley before taking over in 1966.

Paterno died in December 2012 at the age of 85 of lung cancer.

Honoring Paterno, who became synonymous with Penn State football over the years, has been challenging for the university because of how his tenure ended. There were questions about whether Paterno should have been aware of Sandusky’s crimes and whether he and other university officials did enough when red flags were raised about the former defensive coordinator’s behavior.

In 2016, Penn State commemorated the 50th anniversary of Paterno’s first game as head coach during a September home game against Temple. The video tributes drew mostly ovations from Penn State fans, but there were some visiting fans in the stadium who protested by turning their backs to the screens.

Penn State has paid out more than $100 million in settlement agreements with more than two dozen Sandusky victims.

The Paterno family and Penn State settled their legal disputes in 2021. Paterno’s son, Jay, had claimed the university had unfairly tarnished his reputation in a report that detailed a university-commissioned investigation into the Sandusky case. Jay Paterno worked as an assistant coach for his father for more than a decade and is now a member of Penn State’s board of trustees.

The opening of the museum exhibit signals further reconciliation between the university and the Paterno family.

The new exhibit features Paterno’s original office desk and personal artifacts, program trophies and honors from his tenure, interactive displays highlighting milestone games and interviews, and a video from new coach Matt Campbell outlining the program’s current direction.

Paterno’s widow, Sue, recently spoke to the Penn State football team.

Sue Paterno giving a talk on Legacy & commitment to PSU to @PennStateFball in a team meeting yesterday. pic.twitter.com/Zbn797BDbn

— Jay Paterno (@JayPaterno) August 27, 2026

“One of the unique things about top college football programs is the powerful sense of history and tradition which forever resides in the minds of students, alumni and fans,” Jay Paterno told The Athletic. “This experience is about the future that begins Saturday with Matt Campbell and the 139 previous seasons. It’s an important marker connecting the present to the past for all Penn Staters.”