News of former Penn State coach Joe Paterno's death has impacted the university's community across the country, including students and alumni right here in Western New York. YNN's Kaitlyn Lionti spoke with a current student and alumni about the school's loss and how they hope he's remembered.

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"It was really like an eerie feeling on campus. I mean, everyone was kind of stunned about it, including myself," said Eric Bress, a freshman at Penn State who is from Williamsville.

"We thought for sure he'd be on the sidelines when this day came," said Steve Chaves, a 2010 graduate of Penn State, originally from Lancaster.

Despite coming under fire recently after his former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky was charged with child molestation, Bress and Chaves say it's important to remember all the good Paterno did for Penn State.

Bress said, "He's done so much for our school that no one seems to realize. Like, the library's named after him, he donated all the money for the library, he continued to donate money even after he was fired from the school and he's always been committed to education and everything for the students. It's so hard to see him go down this way."

"He did so much for the university and just the things that he stood for, such as academic integrity, coaching his players to be, he cared about not just football, he cared about what his players were going to do after they graduated. He wanted them to graduate, he tried to provide every means for them to be able to graduate," said Chaves.

Bress says even as a freshman, he felt the impact Paterno had on the university.

"We were at his house the day before he got fired, and I was within a couple feet of him when he got out of the car and when he came out to talk to all the students I was right there watching. It was a really special moment being there," said Bress.

And Bress says Paterno's legacy will live on through members of the Penn State community.

"I think, on campus, he'll always be remembered as not only a great football coach, but just a great person and just for everything he's done for the school," said Bress.

"You know, what made Joe Paterno Joe Paterno wasn't because it was him, it was because of things that he stood for, the values that he wanted to come across," said Chaves.

The Penn State Alumni Association of Western New York also released a statement on Paterno's passing, reading in part: "Coach Paterno contributed 60 years of his life to making Penn State a better institution and for this he will be forever remembered. He touched the lives of so many students, faculty, staff and alumni and will always be remembered as an educator, humanitarian and coach."