One of those integral to Joe Paterno's firing in Nov. 2011 has changed his stance, stating that the late Penn State head football coach should have been able to finish the season.

Speaking to the Philadelphia Inquirer Thursday after losing his reelection bid, Penn. Gov. Tom Corbett said Paterno was wrongfully fired. Penn State University should have given the late coach a more ceremonious exit, Corbett said.

On Nov. 9, 2011, after the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal broke, Paterno announced he would retire at season's end. However, the Penn State Board of Trustees decided later that day to fire him immediately, citing evidence that Paterno contributed marginally to covering up Sandusky's crimes.

"They probably shouldn't have fired him. They probably should have suspended him," Corbett told the Inquirer. "He probably should have been given the last three games, not on the sideline."

Don Van Natta Jr. reported for ESPN in June 2013 that Corbett was central in the decision to fire Paterno. Corbett was also the state attorney general when the police launched their investigation against Sandusky in the late 1990s. Paterno was reportedly informed in 2001 of an incident in which Sandusky was seen abusing a young boy and the coach then went to the athletic director.

After nothing happened, Sandusky continued to victimize young boys while Paterno and other faculty members elected not to go to the police. Looking back, Corbett said Paterno "technically complied with the law."

Graham Spanier, Tim Curley and Gary Schultz, three former Penn State administrators, are awaiting trial for charges relating to covering up for Sandusky's crimes. Paterno may not have joined them, had he not died in Jan. 2012, but the Trustees determined the coach ignored Sandusky's crimes.

The NCAA was recently revealed to have internal disagreements about the historically severe sanctions against the school. Onward State obtained and published the emails, which were part of a lawsuit against the NCAA for the legality of the $60 million fine against Penn State.

Those sanctions were lifted in part this season, restoring the football team's scholarships as of next season and making the Lions bowl eligible immediately, but 111 of Paterno's wins from 1998 to 2011 will remain vacated.