NCAA Ruling In this Morning

[GodfatherofSoul]

And, it was brutal. I was hoping the punishment would be focused on the administrators that screwed up and not the players. And, wasn't the NCAA saying earlier they had not jurisdiction?

• No postseason football for 4 years
• All wins from 1998 to 2011 vacated
• Paterno stripped of winningest coach title
• Football scholarships cut from 25 to 15

http://news.yahoo.com/penn-state-fac...fl.html?_esi=1

[Polamalu Princess]

http://aol.sportingnews.com/ncaa-foo...6pLid%3D182616


NCAA president Mark Emmert did not deliver Penn State the death penalty Monday. Rather, Emmert sentenced the university and the football program to a decades-long imprisonment.

That’s how long it might take for Penn State to see the light of day again after arguably the most severe sanctions in college sports history were levied in the wake of the Freeh Report. The toll for its actions:

— A $60 million fine, equal to one year's revenue for the Penn State football program

— 40 scholarship losses, 10 a year for each of the next four years

— A four-year postseason ban

— All wins vacated from 1998-2011, including 111 of Joe Paterno's career victories

— All players can transfer and be immediately eligible

— A five-year probation

"The lesson here is one of maintaining the appropriate balance of our values," Emmert said. "...If you find yourself in a position where the athletic culture is taking precedent over the academic culture, a variety of bad things can occur."

Penn State has agreed to not challenge or appeal the NCAA's findings.

In handing down this punishment under "extraordinary circumstances," the NCAA did not in any way resemble itself. There was no notice of allegations. No 90-day period for Penn State to respond. No waiting period while the NCAA considered its course.

Penn State penalties: NCAA president Mark Emmert hopes the sanctions help "rebuild an athletic culture that went poorly awry." (AP Photo)

Instead, Emmert and NCAA executive committee chairman Dr. Edward J. Ray called for an immediate end to hero worship, the kind that led men in positions of authority to step out of Paterno's way and comply to his wishes at the risk or innocent children.

"This case involves tragic and tragically unnecessary circumstances. One of the grave dangers stemming from our love of sports is that the sports themselves become too big to fail, indeed, too big to even challenge," Emmert said. "The result can be an erosion of academic values that are replaced by the value of hero worship and winning at all costs. All involved in intercollegiate athletics must be watchful that programs and individuals do not overwhelm the values of higher education. In the Penn State case, the results were perverse and unconscionable."

Penn State can carry no more than 65 players on scholarship, only two more than what is allowed by FCS programs. The $60 million fine, Emmert said, cannot come from non-revenue sports and cannot be paid for by taking away scholarships. Current and incoming players can transfer to other programs without penalty, and they won't be counted against the scholarship totals of the teams they join.

Emmert said the goal was to enact punitive damage while "having minimal impact on innocent parties."

... removed (cannot post full article)... Click on link to read this paragraph.

Among them: Paterno, whose presence engulfed the football program and the university, cared more about protecting the program’s image than he did the lives of the young victims being attacked year after year by Jerry Sandusky, dating back to 1998.

Confronted in 2001 with allegations made by former assistant coach Mike McQueary that Sandusky had raped a boy in the Lasch Building showers, Paterno told his superiors to keep the situation quiet. Sandusky was not arrested until November 2011 and in June was convicted on 45 counts of sexually assaulting 10 boys over a 15-year period.

"As the executive committee, Division I board and I have examined discussed in this case, we kept foremost in our thoughts the tragic damage that has been done to victims and their families," Emmert said. "No matter what we do here today, there is no action we can take that will remove their pain and anguish. But what we can do is impose sanctions that both reflect the magnitude of these terrible acts, and ensure that Penn State will rebuild an athletic culture that went poorly awry."

The man charged, in part, with permanently changing that culture is coach Bill O'Brien.

"I am committed for the long term to Penn State and our student athletes," O'Brien said. "I could not be more proud to lead this team and these courageous and humble young men into the upcoming 2012 season."

On Sunday, the iconic image of Paterno—a 7-foot, 900-pound bronze statue—was removed from outside Beaver Stadium. It left behind a gaping hole where greatness once stood. Just like the one left in the heart of Penn State on Monday.

[Polamalu Princess]

I personally do not get this. Why are they punishing the people that did not have anything to do with it and not the guilty. The guilty should be punished to the fullest, but in this case kids that were not eve at the school will be hurt. This does not make sense to me. IMHO.

[suitanim]

This is ALWAYS the case. I agreed that OSU should have been punished for "tattoogate", but NOT the players. It NEVER makes sense to punish players who did nothing wrong for either other players who did, or, worse (and in this case), coaches, staff and administrators.

[steeldevil]

I don't see how players are being punished. They can leave if they choose to and immediately play, or if they want to stay and continue to play and represent Penn State they can do that as well. Not that big a punishment. The school and those involved in the cover up will get off much much worse. Obviously.

[steelerdude15]

First off, when was the last time Penn State even went a bowl? The chances of them getting to a bowl are pretty slim because of the conference they're in. Second, that sixty million dollar fine is insane. It is what it is.

[Godfather]

First off, when was the last time Penn State even went a bowl?

Ticket City Bowl last year. Houston taught them personal hygiene.

[Animal Mother]

This is a knee jerk reaction at best. The public is out with their torches ready to burn down anyone who liked PSU football in the past 30 years. Think about the shockwave that one guy created. One guy does horrible despicable things and thousands are punished. I still believe in you Joe. I just bet that Jerry deceived him into thinking he didn't do anything wrong and he was being wrongly accused. Joe stuck up for his friend and gave him the benefit of the doubt, now his name and legacy is ruined.

[43Hitman]

First off, when was the last time Penn State even went a bowl? The chances of them getting to a bowl are pretty slim because of the conference they're in. Second, that sixty million dollar fine is insane. It is what it is.

You know whats even more insane. The fact that kids were being raped in the shower of that school, and Joe Pa helped cover it up. Lets keep it to reality here and not forget what happened to those kids because no amount of money will be able to fix what happened to them.

[Animal Mother]

This reaks of corruption. Joe Paterno is being eviscerated in the media and in the Freeh report and can't even defend himself. The public has already formed their opinion based on assumptions and guesses. We have the benefit of hindsight, but we're all just assuming there was a cover up. What if there wasn't? What if they just didn't know the full story? What if this happened to someone you worked with and you were found guilty of a cover up and couldn't do anything about it?

[BigNastyDefense]

They got curb stomped.

JoePa covered it up along with his bosses.

The players can transfer and play immediately. Or they can stay and represent Penn State University...it's their choice.

[43Hitman]

This reaks of corruption. Joe Paterno is being eviscerated in the media and in the Freeh report and can't even defend himself. The public has already formed their opinion based on assumptions and guesses. We have the benefit of hindsight, but we're all just assuming there was a cover up. What if there wasn't? What if they just didn't know the full story? What if this happened to someone you worked with and you were found guilty of a cover up and couldn't do anything about it?

If Joe Pa had done the right thing to begin with we wouldn't be having this discussion. I honestly cannot see how anyone can still be defending him at this point. He lied under oath in front of a grand jury. He helped facilitate a cover-up. These are facts that the Freeh report uncovered.

[Animal Mother]

If Joe Pa had done the right thing to begin with we wouldn't be having this discussion. I honestly cannot see how anyone can still be defending him at this point. He lied under oath in front of a grand jury. He helped facilitate a cover-up. These are facts that the Freeh report uncovered.

That's incorrect. They are not facts, they were not proven in a court of law. They were based on assumptions and opinions of one man who was paid 6 million dollars to find evidence of a cover up.

The most damning "evidence" I have heard was from an email that stated they weren't going to report the shower incident after talking it over with Joe. That's hearsay, there's no direct evidence that Joe said "cover it up" or said "I think we should report it" and maybe he disagreed with them. But oh wait, some guy named Freeh said so, so that's fact. Oh and a million other people believe it to so I guess it is the truth.

Baaaa baaaa, here come the sheep.

[GodfatherofSoul]

Heard something interesting this morning; Penn State was not found to have violated ANY NCAA rules. This judgment was based on unrestricted authority granted to one man at the NCAA on the matter. And, Penn State signed off on it without the involvement of their board.

[Animal Mother]

Heard something interesting this morning; Penn State was not found to have violated ANY NCAA rules. This judgment was based on unrestricted authority granted to one man at the NCAA on the matter. And, Penn State signed off on it without the involvement of their board.

To recap, 1 man came up with a report and 1 other man handed out punishments based on that report. Yeah sounds legit. Luckily we aren't talking about millions of dollars or affecting innocent people's lives or anything.

[fansince'76]

Heard something interesting this morning; Penn State was not found to have violated ANY NCAA rules. This judgment was based on unrestricted authority granted to one man at the NCAA on the matter.

And yet they get absolutely obliterated with unprecedented sanctions. Goodell running the NCAA now too?

[steelerdude15]

Does anyone know if the report is viewable by the public?

[Animal Mother]

Does anyone know if the report is viewable by the public?

http://thefreehreportonpsu.com/

He made it 297 pages so it looks like he was thorough but really to prevent the average public from reading it.

[steelerdude15]

http://thefreehreportonpsu.com/

He made it 297 pages so it looks like he was thorough but really to prevent the average public from reading it.

Thanks, I might just skim through it since its that long.

[steelerdude15]

Well, I'll probably wait till the other two go to court to make a full decision.