Stopping short of cancelling the season, the NCAA Monday imposed severe, wide-ranging sanctions against Penn State football in light of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.
“This is just an unprecedented, painful chapter in the history of intercollegiate athletics,” said NCAA President Mark Emmert.
The sanctions include:
- $60 million fine, with the money going to set up an endowment to benefit child sex abuse prevention and treatment programs nationwide. The amount is equal to a year's gross football revenue at Penn State.
- 4-year ban on bowl game appearances.
- 4-year reduction in scholarships from 25 to 15. Current scholarship players are free to transfer from Penn State to other schools and immediately play at their new school, if academically eligible.
- All Penn State wins from 1998-2011 are vacated, essentially stripping late coach Joe Paterno of the title of "winningest coach in college football history."
- 5-years probation.
The NCAA also will require Penn State to employ a chief compliance officer. The NCAA will select an ethics integrity monitor who will report to the NCAA as well as to Penn State and the university’s trustees as to the school’s progress.
Also Monday, the Big Ten Conference announced its own sanctions, saying Penn State is not allowed to share the conference's bowl revenues while it's serving the NCAA's postseason ban.
"That money, estimated to be approximately $13 million, will be donated to established charitable organizations in Big Ten communities dedicated to the protection of children," said a statement issued by the conference.
Penn State President Rodney Erickson said the university "accepts the penalties and corrective actions announced today by the NCAA. With today’s announcement and the action it requires of us, the University takes a significant step forward," he said in a statement posted on Penn State's web site.
The sanctions are meant to "ensure that Penn State will rebuild an athletic culture that went horribly awry," said Emmert. “For the next several years now Penn State can focus on the work of rebuilding its athletic culture, not the next bowl game.”
Emmert said the NCAA considered the death penalty, a sanction that would have shut the school’s football program for a period of years, but felt it would have brought “harm to many who have nothing to do with this case.”
The sanctions come a day after Penn State Paterno's statue from outside Beaver stadium, and are based on former which concluded that the highest leaders of the university showed a "total disregard for the safety and welfare of children" who were abused by Jerry Sandusky.
Erickson said much work remains to be done, but several reforms have already been implemented.
"It is important to know we are entering a new chapter at Penn State and making necessary changes," he said.
"We must create a culture in which people are not afraid to speak up, management is not compartmentalized, all are expected to demonstrate the highest ethical standards, and the operating philosophy is open, collegial, and collaborative."
The Paterno family also released a statement, suggesting the NCAA acted before all of the facts are known.
"The NCAA has now become the latest party to accept the (Freeh) report as the final word on the Sandusky scandal. The sanctions announced by the NCAA today defame the legacy and contributions of a great coach and educator without any input from our family or those who knew him best," the family said in its statement.
Do you agree with the NCAA sanctions? You can add your comments in the box below, and take our poll.
Peggie P. Richardson 9:50 am on Monday, July 23, 2012 The students should not be penalized for the actions of one horrible man and the negligence of others. Put the punishment where it belongs, on the offenders. and all of us started fighting like the children and like the media who couldn't be happier. Im done
Read what thmp actually wrote. I agree with thmp completely. Penn State students who CRY and WHINE about Paterno and the football program do deserve criticism. The students are NOT victims and they need to wake up and realize what the PSU administration allowed to happen. You just don't get it! Because of the actions of a few, many people will be punished. That is life and life is not always fair! Although, in my opinion, the punishment in this case was more than fair. In fact I thought that PSU got off easy for what the administration covered up. They could have easily gotten a four year death penalty for football! The we really would have heard the crying and whining! If anything this should serve as a good life lesson to the young PSU students. Your actions (right or wrong) will affect others (intentionally or unintentionally). Wake up and get on the right side of this thing. It's football not a child's life!
And Kathy, if you don't like someone getting on your case, then don't leave comments.
So now I’m abusing PSU students??? I don’t think so. Emotional toll? Give me a break! You act like the students were the ones picking up the soap for Sandusky! The PSU students are adults right? They are big boys and girls that should be able to handle the “emotions” of this scandal. They will still get a good college education, which by the way is the reason for going to college, not football. Again this whole situation should serve as a life lesson for the Penn State students and others of the dangers of worshiping a football program. No one could believe that Joe Pa would cover something up like this but he did. Saint Joe was mortal and made a terrible mistake that resulted in the wrath that is happening at Penn State today. The football program at Penn State was corrupt and was rightfully punished. The whole thing is a tragedy and I only hope that some good can come from it. Perhaps the $60 million will help to prevent some children from being abused. At the very least, the whole scandal at Penn State can serve as an example of how not to run a college football program.
If you're referring to the term "enabling", well that is exactly what he did. He was told about Sandusky, he told his superiors about it, and then did nothing. He went to that campus day after day, saw Sandusky and did nothing. In my book, that qualifies as enabling. And don't even get me started on McQueary hearing "slapping sounds ". While I don't understand your 'muscles' comment, it just so happens I do have some pretty nice muscles as I like to lift hand weights regularly so my arms look fetching in a tank top.
I spent the day with my grandma and her favorite saying is Nip it in the butt" as meaning "fixing the problem", not sure if any of you heard the saying before. meaning nip it in the butt -Bastardization of the phrase "nip it in the bud," which in turn means to stop something from happening by squelching it early on.
Then we would have reserved our hate for sandusky. instead joepa covered up, discouraged, and encouraged sandusky. thats why we all hate him and RIGHTFULLY hold him accountable too.
Why quibble over a qualifier? Let’s see if I can help you understand through a simple story, THMP. Since you favor the word creepy, we’ll use a story about Creepy, Inc. THMP works for Creepy, Inc. The President of Creepy, Inc. beats his wife and kids every night. Upper management knows and is complicit. Need punished. Did you know all Creepy employees are drunks? (See the logical connection between wife/child abuse and drunk employees, THMP?) THMP works for Creepy, Inc. Therefore, THMP is a Creepy drunk. But hey, why quibble over a modifier? THMP said “No wonder you are in such denial. Having to pay off those student loans for a school whose greatest legacy is a covering up the crimes of Jerry Sandusky for at least 14 years.” No support – irrelevant bloviating.