nbc's ron mott starts us off tonight from state college, p.a. ron, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening to you. joe paterno's final day as penn state's football coach was full of drama and intrigue. the coach tried to control how he would exit the campus but in the end it was the board of trustees that seized that control and fired him. >> joe paterno is no longer the head football coach effective immediately. >> reporter: after 46 years atop the throne of penn state's football kingdom, joe paterno got a phone call wednesday night trumping his planned retirement leading to his immediate ouster instead and that of the school's president. >> we thought that because of the difficulties that have engulfed our university, and they are great as you have all documented, that it was necessary for us to make a change in the leadership to set a course for a new direction. >> reporter: hours earlier, the 84-year-old paterno declared he would step down at the end of the season saying in a statement, the board should not spend a single minute discus

ron mott, nbc news, block island. >> great story to end our tuesday night broadcast on. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. and, of course, we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> right now at 6:00, a chaotic scene at uc berkeley as police open fire inside a computer lab. good evening, everyone. i'm jessica. >> and i'm raj mathai. our nbc helicopter over the school of business on the cal campus. a man walked into a third floor computer lab and brandished a handgun. >> this happened on the same day

nbc's ron mott starts us off though from state college, pennsylvania. ron, good evening to you. >> reporter: savannah, good evening. the new president at penn state has been on the job 48 hours. among his first decisions, to remove an assistant football coach who is at the center of this child sexual abuse investigation. the assistant coach who told a grand jury he saw a former coach sexually assaulting a young boy in a campus shower nine years ago has been placed on administrative leave. mike mcqueary had been getting threats and penn state officials moved to keep him away from saturday's game for his own security. >> dr. rodney erickson. [ applause ] >> reporter: penn state's new president greeted the board of trustees and seemed to appreciate the hot seat he now occupies and the rough terrain ahead. >> i accept this new leadership role under circumstances that i never could have imagined. >> reporter: with three decades on campus, most recently as executive vice president and provost, erickson said while the university has been rocked by this week's s

ron mott has the latest. >>> joe paterno is no longer the head football coach effective immediately. >> reporter: after 46 years atop the throne of penn state's football kingdom, joe paterno got a phone call wednesday night trumping his planned retirement leading to his immediate oust instead and that of the school's president. >> we thought that because of the difficulties that have engulfed our university and they are great, as you all have documented, that it was necessary for us to make a change in the leadership to set a course for a new direction. >> joe pa, joe pa. >> reporter: the immediate reaction to paterno's firing was violent, students overturning and damaging vehicles shouting object sen citis about the former assistant coach child with child sexual abuse. more responses emerged. >> i kind of have mixed feelings. the town should be upset. on the other hand, joe pa could have done more. >> tom bradley, now about moving forward. >> coach paterno has meant more to me than anybody except my father. we have to find a way to restore the confidence and start a healing process.

ron mott, nbc news, block island. >> great story to end our tuesday night broadcast on.nk you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. and, of course, we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

ron mott, nbc news, block island. >> great story to end our tuesday night broadcast on.nk you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. and, of course, we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com [ jennifer ] here... this is my world. ♪ this place inspires me to be tougher... to stay sharper... to think faster. they may be just streets to you. but to me... they're a playground. ♪ ...loving you ♪ 'cause i'm alive, i can breathe, i can feel ♪ ♪ i believe ♪ and there ain't no doubt about it ♪ [ jerry ] attention shoppers. your groceries are the size of idaho but the interest rate on your checking is small potatoes.

. >> nbc's ron mott is in state college, pennsylvania, with the latest. that was such an uncomfortable moment to watch. i saw one person compare it to sort of nixon leaving the white house, in that he's on one hand talking to those students. on the other hand chanting "we are penn state" in a moment where the rest of the country is going, how did you not resign yourself? >> exactly, chuck. it was joe paterno's last day as head coach, a day full of drama and some bizarre elements. the students practically rioted in some instances here last night after this decision was made. a news truck was overturned, a car windshield broken out, police had to use pepper spray. it was a bizarre end to a very storied career for head coach here. what makes this unique and striking, not only did he we the downfall of a revered football coach, we saw the public downfall of a well respected university president, spending 16 years as president of penn state. that's almost unheard of these days. joe paternalo more than 50 years as a coach, 46 years as head coach here. chuck, it

nbc's ron mott has the latest now from state college, pennsylvania. ron, good morning. >> reporter: hey, natley, good morning to you. assistant coach mike mcqueary is a key witness in this case against a former assistant, and because emotions are raw and potentially volatile, the university is keeping him away from tomorrow's big game. right now mike mcqueary is in the eye of the storm. the penn state scandal has cost football coaching legend joe paterno his job and several other high profile university officials theirs. mcqueary still holds one but he's been sidelined this weekend. in a statement thursday night the university said "due to multiple threats made against assistant coach mike mcqueary the university decided it would be in the best interests of all for mcqueary not to be in attendance at saturday's nebraska game." mcqueary saw former assistant jerry sandusky allegedly assault a young boy in a campus shower a decade ago. mcqueary told paterno who notified his boss, the athletic director. paterno hasn't been charged but his boss and another

ron mott is live in state college, pennsylvania. good morning. >> reporter: lester, good morning to you. for all new practical purposes, penn state university is under new management. there is a new president, a new athletic director and a new head football coach for the first time in 40 years. yesterday, the new president said he hopes to re-orient the campus culture here so that going forward, no one on penn state's campus will ever again feel afraid about stepping forward and doing the right thing. yesterday, the board announced the formation of a special committee that is going to be charged with a special investigation here on this campus to determine exactly what went wrong, what changes need to be made and that include more staff changes to those we've already seen. ken frazier, the president and the ceo of -- timetable on when that report is going to be ready for infection, lester. >> ron, a big home game obviously there today for the football team. any increase in security you're seeing? >> reporter: yes, indeed. you drive

ron mott was at the game today and has the latest. >> reporter: game day again at beaver stadium supported the usual staples, burgers on the grills and painted faces of the all familiar champs. but there was also strange sounds. donati donation buckets for victims of child abuse. the battle charge turned a somber walk. the replacement greeting the head opponent. >> he's been here my entire life. >> reporter: paterno, though, was on the surf. son, jay, on the quarterback turf. back at the stadium, tightened security to prevent a repeat of wednesday's violence. >> we will rebuild the trust, honor, and pride that have been here for generations. >> reporter: president obama challenging others to look within. >> i think it's a good time for us to do soul searching, every institution, not just penn state, about what our priorities are, and making sure that we understand our first priority is protecting our kids. >> reporter: as penn state absorbs the penn state shocking allegation, everyone daunting blue. many penn state fans returned to support joe paterno and also to express their condolences.

joining me now, ron mott in state college, pennsylvania. good morning, ron. >> reporter: hey, alec. good sunday morning to you. there are a lot of unknowns ahead for penn state university in the wake of this child sexual abuse scandal. one of the certain tis is the football program, the storied treasured football program is changing rapidly as a result. legendary coach joe paterno was all over beaver stadium saturday while not really being there. on signs, in bronze, but not on the field. 46 years since penn state has gone into war on the gridiron without him as football commander in chief. though the scoreboard revealed a loss, these were among the first few cautious steps forward in a new era. after a week of turmoil set the university back in unprecedented ways. >> there are no moral victories. they did hang in there. i was proud that they didn't quit ever. they had a tough week. they came together as a family. >> yet for the paterno family, joe, the dad, son jake, quarterback's coach it marked an emotional separation from their comfortable routine. jay took his father's seat on

joining me now, ron mott in state college with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. this is a new step forward for this penn state football program. first time in 46 years the team will take the field without joe paterno leading the charge. last night there was another big demonstration on campus. unlike the one we saw wednesday night, an unfortunate one a few days ago, this gathering was intended to help put back together what's been taken apart. ♪ imagine there's no heaven >> reporter: last night thousands of penn state students and alums sought to make amends. >> we are sorry, but the only thing that matters right now is that we are here for you. >> reporter: it was a chance at forgiveness and unity through music -- ♪ and the tears come streaming down your face ♪ >> reporter: through silence. through painful words. >> i relate to it because i was sexually abused when i was little. >> reporter: all in hopes of shining a more positive light on their ranks. after a week that saw some of them react violently to the firin

>> ron mott on penn state campus.so much. >>> if you read the grand jury, what stands out as much as anything else is how many witnesses might have blown the whistle on this alleged abuse a long time ago but chose not to. i want to bring in a former prosecutor who joins me live from atlanta. nice to talk to you. we haven't talked in a long time. >> good to talk to you, thomas. >> you know because of my personal history that i'm furious as hell over this. i see allegations and get madder and read grand jury testimony and it's mind-blowing. is this just the tip of the iceberg as we pull back the layers of this story here and as people start to remember, yeah, i saw this and yeah i saw that. >> you're exactly right. this is just the indictment. this is what we have seen publicly. as the case develops, there could be more and more as word spreads. the local paper there started actually reporting on this back in march. there was a grand jury investigation leading up to this indictment that we now have and all these people

. >> let's get straight to penn state now where ron mott is standing by. has anything significant come out of that meeting so far? >> reporter: yes. they have announced that they are going to form a special committee to take a look into all the things that went wrong potentially here on campus with respect to these alleged sexual encounters that took place on campus allegedly involving a former employee, assistant coach jerry sandusky who has been arrested and charged with sexually abusing eight young men who were dirnl at the time. what they've told us by the board ken fraser, a member of the board will head the charge here, looking at what went wrong potentially on this campus. later this afternoon they are going release the names of the other members of that special committee which will include a couple of other additional trustee board members as well as student representatives as well as faculty representatives. penn state looking at a comprehensive look in the mirror to see how they can fix and prevent from what happening here. we're hearing for the

lester. >> ron mott. the allegations of child sexual abuse are being levelled against kevin sandufshgy. we're learning about his alleged double life. nbc's national investigative correspondent michael isokopf has more details on that live honoring this morning. >> a day after that big football game, the attention is shifting back to the sex abuse scandal that has shaken the school, and it's now taking on a national dimension. >> investigators tell nbc news that they are vigorously pursuing new leads about other possible victims of alleged sex offender jerry sandusky. sandusky has denied all charges and is free on $100,000 bail. he has even reported by been spotted in the local mall wearing a penn state sweat shirt. >> i'm furious. it's the fact that what he has done and now he can walk the streets, sleep in his own bed, you know, spend time with his family. he should be behind bars for being a pedophile. >> she quit this week as a volunteer fundraiser for the charity sandusky founded. the second mile, whe

nbc's ron mott leads our coverage from state college tonight. ron, good evening. >> reporter: lester, good evening to you. another coach who wasn't here is an assistant coach mike mcqueary who told a grand jury about being a young boy being sexually assaulted in a shower stall back in 2002. but the shame and outrage his testimony produced was clearly here today. game day again at the stadium afforded the usually staples. burgers sizzling on the grill. painted faces. that all-familiar chant. but there were also strange new sights and sounds added to the rituals. donation buckets for victims of child abuse. a call to silence in their honor. the battle charge turned somber walk minus joe paterno, whose replacement instead greeting the opponents. >> he's been the heart of penn state my entire life. and i just have a heart for him. >> reporter: paterno was on the turf. skon jay, the quarterback's coach. while outside his father's home people left notes of goodwill. . back at the stadium, tightened security to prevent a repeat of wednesday night's viol

nbc's ron mott is live at state college with more.assistant coach mike mcqueary is set to be a key witness in the case against a former assistant. because emotions are raw and volatile the university is keeping him away from the stadium for tomorrow's big game. right now, mike mcqueary is in the eye of the storm. the penn state scandal cost football coaching legend joe paterno his job and other high ranking officials theirs. mcqueary still holds one but he's been sidelined. in a statement "due to multiple threats made against assistant coach mike mcqueary the university decided it would be in the best interests of all for mcqueary not to be in attendance for the game." >> a lot of students cannot understand that, because it seems as though they both committed the same crime of negligence. >> reporter: according to the grand jury, mcqueary saw former assistant jerry sandusky allegedly sexually assault a young boy in a campus shower nearly a decade ago. mcqueary told paterno who notified his boss, the athletic director. both, along with

ron mott live in state college to tell us more. good morning. >> reporter: hey, lester, good morning to you a lot of unknowns here ahead at penn state university. what is certain, this football program is changing rapidly as a result. legendary coach joe paterno, all over beaver stadium saturday while not really being there. on signs, bronze, but not on the field. 46 years since penn state has gone into war on the gridiron without him as football commander in chief. though the scoreboard revealed a loss, these were among the first few cautious steps forward in a new era, after a week of turmoil set the university back in unprecedented ways. >> there are no moral viktdryes. i was proud they didn't quit ever. they came together as a family. >> reporter: yet for the paterno family, joe the dad, son jay, quarterbacks coach, it marked an uncomfortable space. he felt the void. >> dad, i wish you were here. we love you. >> reporter: the game against nebraska was a welcome return of a beloved institution here. a chance for a storied team t

. >> ron mott, thank you very much. >>> we're going to go inside capitol hill's culture of corruption with jack abramoff and how washington has changed since his lobbying days. >>> first, a look ahead at the president's schedule. he's going to be laying a wreath pretty soon at arlington nar national ceremony and then it's off to san diego. you're watching msnbc. what's going on here? hey, whats up guys? this is not how witness protection works! when we set you up with that little hardware store we didn't intend for your face to be everywhere. but fedex office makes it so easy. not only do they ship stuff, they print flyers, brochures -- everything i need to get my name out there. that's the problem. now we need to give you a third identity. you're paul matheson. and you're gonna run your business into the ground. erik gustafson would never do that! there is no erik gustafson. hey that's erik gustafson!!! there is no erik gustafson!!!!! [ male announcer ] small business solutions. fedex. solutions that matter. [ male announcer ] small business solutions. smal l bu [ male announcer ] sm

. >> nbc's ron mott is live in state college, pennsylvania, watching that story for us. ron, any details on the nature of those threats we just mentioned against coach mcqueary? >> reporter: good morning. no. we didn't get more specific information regarding those threats from the university. the statement issued last night saying that coach mcqueary would not be here tomorrow was very flat. it didn't say much more than he had received threats and for the interest of everyone, they decided to pull him away from the game tomorrow. now nebraska officials called penn state officials yesterday asking that they put more security forces on the ground here and penn state confirmed to nebraska officials they will do that. one thing i want to mentioning talking about interim president erickson, i want to add that they are going to look for answers and the community at large here in penn state and around the country will be looking for answers about the board itself. this current investigation kicked off back in '09 started when now governor tom corbit was the state attorney genera

. >> joining me now, nfl hall of famer -- and ron mott on the penn state campus. what's the mood like now? >> dra matly different. on the streets, students voicing their displeasure at how coach paterno was fired, by telephone. 46 years as head coach here, more than 50 years on this campus. this is day one in the post joe paterno era. today, the university announced the new coach, tom bradley, a familiar name for the penn state faithful here. he is the man that replaced jerry san ddusky, the former assistant coach at the center of this fire storm here. he had this to say about stepping in and trying to fill in the shoes of an iconic coach. >> i take this job with very mixed emotions due to the situation and i will proceed in the manner that the penn state expects as i met with the players last night and today, the expectations were not for that. >> now, coach bradley seemed to be only interested in answering questions with respect to his job now and the big game on saturday. it's senior day for members of the football team. he was asked a number of questions about

thank you so much, ron mott. a lot of questions still have to be answered. >>> and the super committee, those talks hitting a wall. the latest next with jim clyburn. >>> plus, the debt crisis in europe and its potential impact here at home. this is "andrea mitchell reports" only on msnbc. [ mom ] alright guys, play with your toys after dinner. looks beautiful, honey. [ rattling ] jason... really buddy, wow. samantha jane. ♪ guys, christmas dinner and you're bringing toys to the table? ♪ that, that's not a toy... let's eat! [ male announcer ] get no interest on all walmart purchases on your walmart credit card through december if paid in full in 6 months. thank you very much. you're on e-trade. huntin' down stocks, bonds, etfs. oh i love etfs. look at you. why don't you show me your portfolio? i'd love to... i already logged out. oh no, it's easy, actually, to get back... see where it says history? there's a history? yeah, it'll take you right back to the site you were just on. well the last site... [ british vo ]

let's go to our ron mott live in state college, pennsylvania, with more for us this morning. ron. >> reporter: hey there, thomas, good morning. yesterday, the final day as head coach here at penn state for joe paterno was full of drama and had some bizarre elements thrown in there as well. as well as some vandalism late last night with the gigantic student protests here on campus. they were not very happy at all about the coach's immediate termination from his job here on the campus. but what we also should point out is not only the very public fall from grace for this iconic head coach, but the university president, graham spanier, in his own right, a very well respected leader of academic institutions. he spent 16 years leading this institution. and a lot of critics are saying that the image that he along with joe paterno formed here of this campus where you have high-profile athletics co-existing with integrity and academics. and they were able to sell this message not only to this community but across the country, they were well regarded around the country. and all of that

nbc's ron mott is live to bring us up to speed. it looks pretty good right now.eiving for some travel here's will get a later start. >> reporter: i think these folks are pigging up the traffic after the lunch hour as they got the kids out of school, are now heading to their thanksgiving destinations. this is probably the heaviest we've seen on interstate 90 as people are leaving boston. aaa expecting 38.2 million to hit the roads. another few million hitting the air. that's a 4% increase over last year which is significant, considering it is the largest jump we've seen in quite a while through this recession. but also because gas prices are significantly higher this thanksgiving than they were a year ago. last year about 2.87. this year, $3.83. i think this station is about the national average. people are shelling out about 45 cents more a gallon but they're doing it. they're filling up and heading out here in boston and up and down the eastern seaboard. fortunately the rain has stopped. they were forecasting rain for most of the day along the eastern seaboard.

let's begin in state college, pennsylvania and nbc's ron mott. ron, good morning. >> reporter: ann, good morning to you. when the university canceled joe paterno's scheduled news conference on tuesday he came out wednesday on the offensive publicly announcing his retirement effective at the end of the football season but the university board of trustees had a different exit plan in mind. >> with that stunning announcement joe paterno's career at penn state came to a screeching halt last night fired over the phone in the wake of a child sexual abuse scandal involving a former long-time assistant coach. the school's president is also gone. >> we thought that because of the difficulties that had engulfed our university, and they are great, as you all have documented, that it was necessary for us to make a change in the leadership, to set a course for a new direction. >> we want joe! we want joe! >> reporter: overnight, students rallied, a large campus protest turned aggressive. police responded accordingly. and, as they have for several nights, stude