Two replica Joe Paterno statues being made

Two replicas of Joe Paterno’s statue are being made. (USATSI)

Two replicas of the Joe Paterno statue that was removed from outside of Beaver Stadium in 2012 are being made in a “secret location” by two cousins that did the casting work on the original statue, according to Philly.com.

Yesid Gomez and Wilfer Buitrago are creating the two replicas of the statue, one which will be donated to the Paterno family and the other which they plan on having travel around on display for Penn State fans.

(Image via Philly.com)

While the NCAA returned Paterno’s vacated wins in 2014, the statue that was removed has remained in a hidden location. Gomez says that is one of the reasons for the creation of the new statues.

“Penn State should have given us the courtesy of contacting us when they removed the statue and letting us know where it is,” Gomez told Philly.com. “Instead, they are not responding to us, so we decided to bring the statue back again.”

The two are making the statues without the consent of the Paterno family or the original sculptor, but they say they aren’t concerned about copyright issues and are self-financing the $100,000 project.

It should be noted that the statues are not exact replicas as Paterno’s right hand, which used to include a No. 1 gesture, is now a fist.

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