STATE COLLEGE — Joe Paterno has no plans to limp into retirement.

"I'm not going anywhere," Penn State's 79-year-old coach told his squad, according to a statement posted Wednesday on a team Web site. "I expect to be around a while and coaching through each of your careers."

Paterno addressed the team Tuesday, when he returned to practice for the first time since breaking a shinbone and two knee ligaments after a sideline collision with two players on Nov. 4 at Wisconsin.

"You might not see as much of me as I would like for a few weeks, but I'm still involved with your coaches and what you are doing," Paterno told the players, according to the statement.