In his 37 years of coaching, Penn State football coach Joe Paterno has rarely publicly criticized officials.

But after a number of controversial calls went against his Nittany Lions in losses to Iowa, Michigan and Ohio State, Paterno not only lashed out against Big Ten officials. He also has been shown chasing down an official after the Iowa game and grabbing a referee against the Buckeyes.

“I think most of you who’ve known me through the years know I’ve very rarely griped about officials, if ever,” Paterno said at his weekly press conference. “I’ve never blamed officials for losing games, but the problem is that you have a bunch of kids who are in the there busting their butt to win a football game. You owe it to them to make sure the game is won by the players.”

Now, Paterno has become one of the leading advocates of the seemingly annual debate on instant replay in college football. Currently no replay system exists, but that could change with the lobbying of coaches like Paterno.

“I would have been against it prior to this year,” Paterno said. “Officials are going to make mistakes and I don’t expect them to do things perfectly. But I think the way the game is played now, it’s time to take a really good look at instant replay.”

After the three losses, the Penn State athletic department called the Big Ten office and asked for a general review of all conference officials.

Last week, Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany said the conference will consult coaches about the use of television replays after the season. The conference would have to get permission from the NCAA to implement the policy.

In recent seasons, Big Ten officiating has come under heavy fire. In 2000, the conference office issued an apology to Illinois after a number of missed calls in the Fighting Illini’s 35-31 loss to Michigan. Last season, Michigan football coach Lloyd Carr publicly criticized officials after his team’s last-second loss at Michigan State.

The Big Ten hasn’t been the only victim of questionable calls. In a game against Utah earlier this season, Arizona had an apparent touchdown pass ruled incomplete. The Wildcats were able to hold on to a 23-17 win in spite of the call and Pac 10 officials later admitted their mistake.

“I was never a fan of instant replay – never,” said Arizona football coach John Mackovic. “But there’s so much more at stake today than there was 25, 30 years ago. One missed play, one blown call and that changes the outcome of the game. That can affect not only one team, but the entire conference.”

Instant replay supporters point to the NFL’s system as a model the NCAA could follow. Reinstated in 1999, the NFL system gives coaches two total challenges to use until the final two minutes of each half. If the call stands, a time-out is taken from the challenging team. In the final two minutes of each half, NFL replay officials review calls.

“I think replay would be a step in the right direction,” said Illinois head coach Ron Turner, who also coached in the NFL with the Chicago Bears. “You are never going to get all the calls right, but if you have an opportunity to get some of the calls right, I think you have to take that opportunity.”

While support has grown tremendously over the past season, instant replay still remains an unpopular solution to many coaches.

“I’ve never been a real proponent of instant replay,” said Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel. “I just think it changes the pace of the game and the energy level in college football is so much greater than in the NFL.”

The biggest concern among coaches is the sheer cost of implementing instant replay. The technology would cost between $1 million and $2 million for the Big Ten alone. The cost would be much higher for small conferences, who don’t already have blanketed television coverage.

“I just don’t think we should go to something that’s going to have such a financial impact,” Tressel said. “That’s a lot to ask of small conferences and schools.”

Even Paterno himself acknowledged that instituting replay may not be the best solution.

“When I watch a pro game and I see the official stick his head in whatever they call that thing, I say to myself, ‘The games are long enough,’ ” Paterno said. “Sometimes I am not so sure they can even make a decision when they look at the replay.”