University of Minnesota football coach Jerry Kill said it “would be sad” if Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, an “icon,” will lose his job because of the scandal involving Paterno’s former defensive coordinator, Jerry Sandusky, who is accused of child sexual abuse.

An exit strategy is being formulated that could end Paterno’s coaching tenure “within days or weeks,” the New York Times reported today – although Paterno’s son, Scott, has said there have been no such discussions.

Kill, speaking at his weekly news conference today, said he did not want to judge the situation without knowing all the facts. But he said he was aware of the allegations against Sandusky and the report that Paterno had been told after one alleged incident, in 2002.

Paterno apparently relayed the information to school administrators, but not the police.

“If I have a problem on our staff or we have a situation, I’m going to take care of it – no different than I would with a player,” Kill said. “I’ve had to make some hard calls in my life, but I always thought they were the right ones.”

Kill did not want to discuss his personal feelings about the allegations against Sandusky, but he said, “I think everybody knows what my opinion would probably be.”