Joe Paterno tapped lightly on the table in front of him, smiled softly and sighed.

The sigh was probably a tired, foreboding response to the multiple quarterback questions about to be fired at him during his Tuesday press conference. But he didn’t seem bothered.

The head coach was introspective, calm, soft-spoken and ready to talk. His steady eyes and calm voice said he enjoyed the preseason practices up to that point, as if he carried a lesser burden.

“Another year,” Paterno said after the 30-minute meeting with the media.

It must seem like another year for the legendary coach, but it’s one unlike any other.

A true freshman, Robert Bolden, will start the season at quarterback Saturday against Youngstown State, the first time that’s happened in the Paterno era.

A calm, steady, smiling Paterno, and more importantly, a historic decision to pick Bolden shows the coach has delegated more decision making to his assistant coaches.

No one can blame him, not after the intestinal flu sidelined him from several public events this summer.

“That’s obvious that he’s been delegating more,” Penn State football historian Lou Prato said. “But you can tell over the years that he’s been delegating more. Joe has reached the age where he is realizing that his career is coming to an end, like we all do.”

Prato isn’t saying Paterno lets others make the decisions for him, that he doesn’t watch film, that he doesn’t see Bolden is the best choice to lead the Penn State team right now. Prato believes Paterno is just changing with the times.

The trend started around 2004, when Penn State named Mike McQueary the recruiting coordinator and continued in 2005, when freshmen Derrick Williams and Justin King were key players instrumental in bringing Penn State back to prominence with an Orange Bowl victory over Florida State.

But the Bolden decision proves Paterno’s assistants may now have more influence than ever before.

No one disagrees the quarterback decision was Joe’s, just that the assistant coaches may have had more input than in years past.

There is another side to the story, though.

“He’s always done it his way, always tried to give the older guy a shot first,” former quarterback Todd Blackledge said. “But Joe is a whole lot more flexible and open-minded than people give him credit for.”

Which begs the question — has Paterno become more open-minded in the twilight of his career?

Has he delegated more of what used to be his work to his assistants?

Or is it a combination of the two?

Maybe Bolden, though a true freshman, is good enough to convince Paterno to make a historic decision.

“I’m sure he asks the opinion of the staff,” former broadcaster Fran Fisher said.

“Probably Galen Hall and Jay [Paterno] had input, but ultimately it’s Joe’s decision.”

Ultimately, Paterno’s body language may tell the tale best. On Tuesday, his easy demeanor depicted Paterno carries a lighter burden.

“I don’t coach on the field as much as I used to,” Paterno said last month, admitting his assistants are probably more involved. “They’re doing most of the coaching on the field.”