Penn State penalties

[LMS]

Glad to see they got what they deserved. I'd have been okay with even more frankly.

[unipanther99]

They've basically forced them to become a FCS school with a postseason ban for the next four years.

[LMS]

Big Ten is going to announce additional sanctions today too. No BTN? What else could they do?

[Red]

Breaking news: Big Ten is dumping Penn St and Illinois St will move to FBS to take their place.

[CaseyGarrisonforPrez]

I feel that Emmert caved to public pressure and sensationalized opinion columns that sportswriters who wanted blood had been spewing. This is probably what it was like after the USS Maine was sunk in Havana in 1898 (read: yellow journalism).

I think you can argue that Penn State deserved some type of NCAA punishment but it worries me that PSU is now sticking their collective noses in an area that I am not sure they really should. They defied their typical procedure in this case and that troubles me to a certain extent. I could ramble on and on about the precedent and procedure but I will just sum it all up by saying that this is a very slippery slope. The NCAA had better tread carefully.

Furthermore I am troubled by the conclusions of the Freeh Report. I read the entire thing and I have several questions that I just don't think were fully answered. I am now convinced that JoePa knew "something" but the depth of what he knew cannot really be ascertained in my opinion. His legacy is being properly tarnished right now and I do feel that a lot of it is being done on a rather flimsy pretext. I guess I hope that the man is as guilty as Wetzel and countless other sports writers seem to think because if it ever comes out that he wasn't, irreperable harm has been done to an otherwise sterling reputation.

[PantherSigEp]

I feel that Emmert caved to public pressure and sensationalized opinion columns that sportswriters who wanted blood had been spewing. This is probably what it was like after the USS Maine was sunk in Havana in 1898 (read: yellow journalism).

I think you can argue that Penn State deserved some type of NCAA punishment but it worries me that PSU is now sticking their collective noses in an area that I am not sure they really should. They defied their typical procedure in this case and that troubles me to a certain extent. I could ramble on and on about the precedent and procedure but I will just sum it all up by saying that this is a very slippery slope. The NCAA had better tread carefully.

Furthermore I am troubled by the conclusions of the Freeh Report. I read the entire thing and I have several questions that I just don't think were fully answered. I am now convinced that JoePa knew "something" but the depth of what he knew cannot really be ascertained in my opinion. His legacy is being properly tarnished right now and I do feel that a lot of it is being done on a rather flimsy pretext. I guess I hope that the man is as guilty as Wetzel and countless other sports writers seem to think because if it ever comes out that he wasn't, irreperable harm has been done to an otherwise sterling reputation.

You may be right Casey, perhaps everything was based off of heresay and we will never know how much JoePa actually knew. However, considering the crimes that were committed you will have a difficult time ever convincing me that the NCAA was too harsh on Penn State and Paterno. His legacy deserves to be tarnished because he was not a saint and he was not the deity that many wanted him to be. I would rather that they be too harsh and find out that reports were exaggerated than come down too lightly and then have it occur again.

Supporting Paterno in this situation has been unfathomable for me, we are talking about a man who knew that young boys were being molested within his program and he was unable to be a leader and take proper action. No part of that is acceptable. In no way shape or form can that be tolerated, it doesn't matter who you are. Being Joe Paterno doesn't give you a free pass, in fact it should mean you are held to a higher standard.

We are talking about sports everyone. Sports. That is the biggest issue in this whole situation and many people have failed to see it. Penn State spent decades ignoring the abuse and sexual exploitation of young boys simply so that they could continue to promote and support their legendary coach and football program. That is one of the most evil things I have ever heard of in the realm of sports. Penn State supporters even now, continue to plead innocence for their university and coach. I bet very few of them are forgetting what exactly they are trying to plead innocence from. Over a dozen males have had their lives traumatized and ruined and it could've been stopped many many years ago, saving countless victims (because we honestly don't know how many were victimized and how often), except Penn State football was more important. They is no other way about it, the university simply went with the easiest option of nothing and they are now paying the prices (and rightfully so).

The real crime really had very little to do with sports and Penn St. outside of Sandusky being a former coach, UNTIL the university and its leaders decided to sweep the situation under the rug and let it fester there. Well when they were forced to look back under that rug I hope they were pleased with the grotesque monster they found. They even continued to let that man host children around Penn St facilities within the past few year! Could any of you live with yourself if you authorized Sandusky to show a young boys around Penn St, knowing full well what was likely to happen? I just don't understand how its even possible for being to be either that evil, that soul less or that blindly ignorant and stupid.

Every sanction handed out was justified in my mind and the NCAA did a great job of limiting the punishment of current players and coaches while coming down hardest on the university and JoePa. I truly hope the punishments serve their intended purpose and are a deterrent and reminder to all other schools that you can't put sports ahead of human beings. The legacies of coaches and teams are not above the lives and safety of any individual. It seems obvious to us but Happy Valley clearly didn't understand that and because of that they have an unthinkable amount of sexual molestation victims as well as their broken program. Very sad indeed. Do not forget what we are dealing with folks. Sports (and college sports for that matter) are a beautiful thing and bring a great deal of joy to many different kinds of people in this world. They are a great and wonderful tool but they are just games. Nothing more. No game is worth more than a human life, so lets remember what it truly important in the grand scheme of things