Penn State - Nittany Lions ...item 2.. Penn State hit with unprecedented penalties for Sandusky scandal (Mon Jul 23, 2012 11:42am EDT) ...item 4.. Penn State Receives The Hammer By The NCAA (DETAILS) ...

In a scathing rebuke of Penn State administrators, NCAA President Mark Emmert said the school had put "hero worship and winning at all costs" ahead of integrity, honesty and responsibility.

Penn State officials were accused of not taking action after being alerted to child sex abuse by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. The scandal tainted one of college football's leading coaches, the late Joe Paterno, and led to his firing last year along with other top school officials.

The punishment, announced by the National College Athletic Association at a news conference in Indianapolis, was unprecedented for its swiftness and breadth. It was the latest body blow to an institution still reeling from the child molestation conviction last month of Sandusky, who was a long-time assistant coach under Paterno.
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Our prayers are with the victims of these horrible crimes. --- Global Grind
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.....item 1).... The New York Times ... www.nytimes.com/2012 ... College Football ...

N.C.A.A. Gives Penn State $60 Million Fine and Bowl Ban
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img code photo ... The N.C.A.A. president Mark Emmert, right ... Monday July 23, 2012 ...

graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/07/24/sports/ncaafootba...

The N.C.A.A. president Mark Emmert, right, and Ed Ray, the president of Oregon State University and the chair of the N.C.A.A. executive committee at a news conference in Indianapolis on Monday.

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

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By PETE THAMEL
Published: July 23, 2012

www.nytimes.com/2012/07/24/sports/ncaafootball/penn-state...

INDIANAPOLIS — The N.C.A.A. announced significant penalties against Penn State and its football program Monday, including a $60 million fine and a four-year postseason ban, in the wake of the child sexual abuse scandal involving the former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.

The N.C.A.A. stopped short of shutting down Penn State’s program, but officials insisted that the breadth and significance of the penalties were nearly as debilitating. It is expected to be almost a decade before Penn State will be in a position to attempt to regain its place as one of the sport’s elite programs.

The punishment also included the loss of 10 scholarships per year for the next four years, with a limit of 65 total scholarship players on the roster, as opposed to the typical 85, by the 2014 season. The university must also vacate all of its victories from 1998 to 2011, meaning that Joe Paterno is no longer the major-college career leader in football wins.

In announcing the penalties, Mark Emmert, the N.C.A.A. president, called the case the most painful “chapter in the history of intercollegiate athletics,” and said it could be argued that the punishment was “greater than any other seen in N.C.A.A. history.”

He said Penn State accepted the penalties when they were presented to the university and he called its cooperation “remarkable.”

“Football will never again be placed ahead of educating, nurturing and protecting young people,” Emmert said.

The postseason ban and the scholarship restrictions essentially prevent the program from fielding a team that can be competitive in the Big Ten. The N.C.A.A. will also allow Penn State players to transfer to and immediately play at other universities, inviting the possibility of a mass exodus.

Penn State will be able to extend just 15 scholarships per year, as opposed to the normal 25. Perhaps more important is the ban on postseason play, which takes away one of the most attractive aspects of playing for a successful team. The Big Ten will also fine Penn State $13 million over the next four years, which is essentially equivalent to its postseason revenue.

The decision will question the commitment of anyone tied to the Penn State program, which is almost certain to enter a period of irrelevancy on the field. Penn State Coach Bill O’Brien, set to enter his first season, pledged his commitment to the program.

“I will do everything in my power to not only comply, but help guide the university forward to become a national leader in ethics, compliance and operational excellence,” he said in a statement. “I knew when I accepted the position that there would be tough times ahead. But I am committed for the long term to Penn State and our student-athletes.”

The last Penn State victory that will officially count came in 1997. The quarterback of that Nittany Lions team was Mike McQueary, who became an integral part of the investigation into Jerry Sandusky after witnessing him sexually assaulting a boy in the showers of the football building.

The N.C.A.A.'s penalty is the latest action to stem from the scandal involving Sandusky, who was convicted last month of being a serial pedophile. The release of a grand jury report detailing Sandusky’s actions last November led to the firing of Paterno; the removal of the university’s president, Graham B. Spanier; and charges against two other top university officials.

Emmert said that no punishment the N.C.A.A. could impose would change the damage done to those Sandusky abused, but “the culture, actions and inactions that allowed them to be victimized will not be tolerated in collegiate athletics.”

Ed Ray, the president of Oregon State and the chairman of the N.C.A.A.'s executive committee, said the case, and the sanctions imposed, represented a declaration by university presidents and chancellors that “this has to stop.” By that he meant a win-at-all-costs mentality with respect to intercollegiate sports.

“We’ve had enough,” he said.

The fine was equal to the average annual gross revenue of the football program. The money will be placed into an endowment for programs that work to prevent child sexual abuse and assist victims. No programs at Penn State can be financed by the money.

A report commissioned by Penn State’s board of trustees and conducted by a group led by the former F.B.I. director Louis J. Freeh and released this month revealed a series of failures throughout the university’s leadership in its handling of Sandusky going back more than a decade. The report concluded that those failures stemmed from a culture in which football was revered and consequently became too powerful on campus. The N.C.A.A. used information from the Freeh report when it decided its penalty.

Emmert said all universities must now contemplate whether their own athletic programs had become “too big to fail,” or, even more troubling, “too big to challenge.”

The Freeh report, and the evidence it provided, helped enable the N.C.A.A. to penalize Penn State without going through its traditional infractions process, a typically lengthy affair that includes an investigation, a notice of allegations and providing the university a lengthy amount of time to respond.

The N.C.A.A. also chose not to wait for the numerous criminal and civil cases surrounding the Sandusky case to play out, though those will most likely provide new information on the actions of Penn State administrators.

“Penn State can focus on the work of rebuilding its athletic culture, not worrying about whether or not it’s going to a bowl game,” Emmert said.

That the N.C.A.A. acted this quickly and decisively did not come as a particular surprise to the former Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe, a former N.C.A.A. investigator. Beebe said that the N.C.A.A. has struggled to appear relevant recently while dealing with some of the major issues surrounding college sports, including high-profile cases of rules violations and conference realignment, and that the organization expressed a sincere interest in being more proactive at a retreat in Indianapolis last year.

“I certainly think there have been a lot of changes and issues that have arisen that the N.C.A.A. hasn’t been able to get to,” said Beebe, who is a founding partner in BMT Risk Management, a company that advises colleges and professional sports teams on workplace misconduct. He added: “I think the N.C.A.A. wasn’t a part of realignment, and the playoff movement did not involve N.C.A.A. staff. I think this is an area, like you said, that’s unprecedented and horrific, and I think there’s a real focus on what the N.C.A.A. can and will do about it.”

While the anticipation of the announcement led to much hand-wringing among athletic directors and among the N.C.A.A. compliance community, what sort of precedent this punishment sets remains unclear.

Michael McCann, the director of the Sports Law Institute at Vermont Law School, said this ruling could end up being a one-time decision, with no lasting effect on future policy. He said the key to the N.C.A.A.'s decision to punish Penn State in this manner was directly tied to Penn State’s accepting the penalties.

“The N.C.A.A is 102 years old and this is the first time that something like this has happened,” he said. “I think normally the N.C.A.A. would rather give due process. I think it could be an exception and we don’t see this again. The circumstances are pretty unique, hopefully unique. I don’t see this in all likelihood to come up again.”

What is certain is that Penn State’s football program will be hindered for a long time. The Nittany Lions will welcome a subpar recruiting class to campus this fall and will likely see a significant number of players transfer.

Penn State’s roster is considered weak by its usual standards, and coaches of rival teams said they spent Sunday evaluating the Nittany Lions’ roster and recruits to see which players might be most attractive to pursue.
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.....item 2).... Reuters ... www.reuters.com .... UPDATE 3-Penn State hit with unprecedented penalties for Sandusky scandal

Mon Jul 23, 2012 11:42am EDT

* Penn State football avoids "death penalty"
* NCAA president cites "tragically unnecessary circumstances"
* No bowl games for four seasons, scholarships reduced (Adds conference reaction, quote from new coach)

By Edith Honan

www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/23/usa-pennstate-idUSL2E8...

July 23 (Reuters) - The governing body of U.S. college sports took sweeping, unprecedented action against Penn State University's revered football program on Monday in response to a child sex abuse scandal, fining the school $60 million and voiding the team's victories for the past 14 seasons.

The school was not given the so-called "death penalty" that could have suspended its football program but it was banned from post-season bowl games for four years and had the number of scholarships available to players reduced fro m 25 to 15.

Penn State officials were accused of not taking action after being alerted to child sex abuse by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. The scandal tainted one of college football's leading coaches, the late Joe Paterno, and led to his firing last year along with other top school officials.

The punishment, announced by the National College Athletic Association at a news conference in Indianapolis, was unprecedented for its swiftness and breadth. It was the latest body blow to an institution still reeling from the child molestation conviction last month of Sandusky, who was a long-time assistant coach under Paterno.

In a scathing rebuke of Penn State administrators, NCAA President Mark Emmert said the school had put "hero worship and winning at all costs" ahead of integrity, honesty and responsibility.

The case was another blotch on the diminishing legacy of Paterno, who until Monday's action had held the record for victories among big-time U.S. college football coaches in a career that spanned more than 40 seasons. Paterno lost that status since the NCAA's punishment includes voiding the Nittany Lions' victories between 1998 and 2011 - the time period covering when allegations against Sandusky were first made and San dusk y's arrest.

Emmert said the NCAA chose not to levy the so-called "death penalty" because it would have harmed individuals with no role in the Sandusky scandal.

Later on Monday, The Big Ten Conference of college sports announced Penn State would forfeit its share of revenues for bowl games organized by the league, and the estimated $13 million would instead be donated to charities devoted to the protection of children.

"TRAGICALLY UNNECESSARY"

"This case involves tragic and tragically unnecessary circumstances," Emmert said. "One of the grave damages stemming form our love of sports is that the sports themselves can become too big to fail, indeed too big to even challenge. The result can be an erosion of academic values that are replaced by the value of hero worship and winning at all costs.

"In the Penn State case, the results were perverse and unconscionable," he said. "No price the NCAA can levy will repair the grievous damage inflicted by Jerry Sandusky on his victims. However, we can make clear that the culture, actions and inactions that allowed them to be victimized will not be tolerated in collegiate athletics."

In June, Sandusky, 68, was convicted of sexually abusing 10 boys over 15 years. He awaits sentencing and could be given as many as 373 years in prison.

This month, former FBI director Louis Freeh released a report that criticized Paterno for his role in protecting Sandusky and the school's image at the expense of young victims.

The NCAA penalty was handed down one day after Penn State removed a statue of Paterno from in front of the university football stadium.

Bill O'Brien , Paterno's successor as head coach, said in a statement he was "c ommitted for the long term to Penn State and our student athletes."

" I knew when I accepted the position that there would be tough times ahead, " he said. "I was then and I remain convinced that our student athletes are the best in the country. I could not be more proud to lead this team and these courageous and humble young men into the upcoming 2012 season."

Alan Milstein, a sports lawyer, said he agreed with much of the penalty, but faulted the NCAA's decision to reduce scholarships and impose a lefty fine.

" I don't know how you can say that money does not come out of essentially the students' pockets, whether it results in increased tuition or a lessening of academic services."

College football is a huge generator of money for major U.S. universities such as Penn State because of large television contracts and the mi llions of ti cket sales. Penn State's program, which Paterno led to national championships in 1982 and 1986, was rated the third most valuable by Forbes magazine.

NO NCAA INVESTIGATION

The NCAA acted with unprecedented speed, relying on Freeh's findings instead of conducting its own investigation, though Emmert said the NCAA reserves the right to conduct its own investigation at a later time.

Freeh's report, commissioned by the university's board of trustees and released on July 12, said Paterno and other high-ranking school officials covered up Sandusky's actions for years while demonstrating a callous disregard for victims.

Paterno was fired by Penn State's board in November, days after Sandusky was arrested for the abuse. Paterno died in January of lung cancer.

In 2001, graduate assistant Mike McQueary witnessed Sandusky assaulting a boy in the showers at the Penn State athletic complex. McQueary told Paterno, who told Athletic Director Tim Curley, who subsequently talked with then-university Vice President Gary Schultz and university President Graham Spanier. No one went to the police.

Spanier was fired in November at the same time as Paterno. Curley and Schultz have been charged with perjury for allegedly lying to a grand jury investigating Sandusky's crimes and for failing to report suspected child abuse. They have pleaded not guilty.

The university is also under investigation by the U.S. Department of Education for possible violations of the Clery Act, which requires colleges to collect and report daily and annual crime statistics and issue timely warnings. (Additional reporting by Greg McCune, Barbara Goldberg, Joseph O'Leary and Ellen Wulfhorst; Writing by Dan Burns; Editing by Bill Trott)
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.....item 3).... The Spokesman-Review ... www.spokesman.com ...

July 23, 2012 in Sports
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img code photo ... Sunday July 22, 2012

media.spokesman.com/photos/2012/07/23/paternopic23_t210.j...

A worker hangs a blue tarp over the fence around the Joe Paterno statue as crews worked to remove it.

Associated Press photo
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NCAA fines Penn State, strips victories
RALPH D. RUSSO and TOM COYNE Associated Press

www.spokesman.com/stories/2012/jul/23/ncaa-fines-penn-sta...

NDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The NCAA slammed Penn State with an unprecedented series of penalties Monday, including a $60 million fine and the loss of all coach Joe Paterno’s victories from 1998-2011, in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.

Other sanctions include a four-year ban on bowl games, the loss of 20 scholarships per year over four years and five years’ probation. The NCAA also said that any current or incoming football players are free to immediately transfer and compete at another school.

NCAA President Mark Emmert announced the staggering sanctions at a news conference in Indianapolis. Though the NCAA stopped short of imposing the “death penalty” — shutting down the Nittany Lions’ program completely — the punishment is still crippling for a team that is trying to start over with a new coach and a new outlook.

Sandusky, a former Penn State defensive coordinator, was found guilty in June of sexually abusing young boys, sometimes on campus. An investigation commissioned by the school and released July 12 found that Paterno, who died in January, and several other top officials at Penn State stayed quiet for years about accusations against Sandusky.

Emmert fast-tracked penalties rather than go through the usual circuitous series of investigations and hearings. The NCAA said the $60 million is equivalent to the annual gross revenue of the football program. The money must be paid into an endowment for external programs preventing child sexual abuse or assisting victims and may not be used to fund such programs at Penn State.

“Football will never again be placed ahead of educating, nurturing and protecting young people,” Emmert said.

Emmert had earlier said he had “never seen anything as egregious” as the horrific crimes of Sandusky and the cover-up by Paterno and others at the university, including former Penn State President Graham Spanier and athletic director Tim Curley.

The investigation headed by former FBI Director Louis Freeh said that Penn State officials kept what they knew from police and other authorities for years, enabling the abuse to go on.

There had been calls across the nation for Penn State to receive the “death penalty,” and Emmert had not ruled out that possibility as late as last week — though Penn State did not fit the criteria for it. That punishment is for teams that commit a major violation while already being sanctioned.
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.....item 4).... GlobalGrind ... globalgrind.com/news ... Penn State Receives The Hammer By The NCAA (DETAILS)

Posted 4 hours 9 min ago by ggeditor for Global Grind Staff ... Monday July 23, 2012

globalgrind.com/news/penn-state-punishment-joe-paterno-je...
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img code photo ... Sunday July 22, 2012

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The NCAA has severely punished Penn State for its cover-up of the sexual abuse by assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, who was recently convicted of the molestation of various boys during a twenty-year period.

Our homeboys over at ShortFormBlog broke it down for us:
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img code photo ... screen_shot_2012-07-23_at_9.38.32_am

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This is the harshest punishment by the NCAA of any school in the history of sports. Our prayers are with the victims of these horrible crimes.
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