http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f1/Joe_Paterno_-_Penn_State_-_Outback_Bowl_pep_rally_123110_cropped.jpg/485px-Joe_Paterno_-_Penn_State_-_Outback_Bowl_pep_rally_123110_cropped.jpg Photo By Frances Sonne
Today Penn State University and its football program were brought to their knees with unprecedented penalties never seen before by an NCAA member institution.
NCAA President Dr. Mark Emmert and Dr. Edward J. Ray, President of Oregon State and the NCAA Executive Committee Chairman made the announcement this morning from the NCAA Headquarters in Indianapolis in a live press conference. Dr. Emmert announced the following penalties for Penn State University’s Football Program:
1) Fine of $60 million that will go to serve an endowment nationwide for the education for sex abuse prevention and victim assistance programs.
2) 4 year post-season ban on football beginning in 2012-13 season.
3) Reduction of 10 scholarships each year for 4 years in football, max of 65 scholarships/year.
4) Any current or incoming player may transfer immediately without loss of eligibility.
5) Vacates wins from 1998-2011.
6) 5 year probation of all sports at PSU.
7) Requires PSU to adopt all recommendations for reform in section 10 of Freeh Report.
8) NCAA sanctions of PSU: “Athletics Integrity Agreement” with NCAA ensuring adoption of Freeh recommendations and more.
9) Require appointment of NCAA-selected, independent Athletics Integrity Monitor for 5 years.
10) Individual penalties can still be imposed at conclusion of criminal proceedings related to any individual.
Dr. Emmert comments:
* This case is incredibly unprecedented, as are these actions we are taking today…
* These are very serious sanctions. We hope the fine being imposed will allow some serious good to be done…
* The lesson here is one of maintaining the appropriate balance of our values…
* This case has invoked deeply powerful emotions in all of us…
* This is an awful place to be. This is not good for anyone. This is an unprecedented, painful chapter in college sports…
* This case strikes at the very heart of what colleges athletics are about…
* In the next 10 weeks, we will work w/ PSU and the Big Ten on changing the culture through an Athletics Integrity Agreement…
* We have expressly said the payment of the fine cannot come by reducing or eliminating other sports at PSU…
* Our actions speak to the extraordinary nature of the case, not to any doubt in the NCAA enforcement process…
Dr. Ray comments:
* We were very clear that suspension of play wasn’t appropriate…there needed to be corrective actions, etc…
* The message is the presidents and the chancellors are in charge…
* Unanimous consent among D1 Board and Exec Committee that we needed to act quickly and effectively…
This was a very controversial move by the NCAA due to the fact that President Emmert did not use the traditional methods normally used when investigating a program. The NCAA used the Freeh Report as its sole source of information in their case against PSU. Also, the D1 Board and Executive Committee gave Dr. Emmert the power to act quickly and hand down today’s powerful penalties.
The penalties were met with obvious mixed emotions. The Paterno family have met these penalties and the Freeh report with much skepticism and have vowed to investigate on their own. Many of Paterno’s former players have come out today to comment, most notably, Brandon Noble who was on ESPN Radio’s The Herd with Colin Cowherd. Noble was extremely critical of the NCAA and their role in handing out the penalties without due process along with the vacating of Paterno’s win totals from 1998-2011. Seemingly dismissing Paterno’s role in the coverup as simply to quote Nobel, “as Coach made a mistake” when defending Paterno and criticizing the NCAA.
Also, the Big 10 Conference handed down its own penalties on Penn State in the ultimate “we don’t want to be left out move. “Â The penalties handed out today by the Big 10 were:
1. Official “censure” from the conference
2. Four year ban on playing in the title game
3. Loss of bowl revenue equal to about $2.5 million a year
Without a doubt this was a complete fire bomb of the PSU football program and essentially we will get to watch first hand the slow death of a once proud football program. Today, the NCAA served notice to all its member institutions that the Chancellors and Presidents are tired of the improprieties and they will take the necessary steps to correct it. The problem is they are roughly 100 years too late and they opened up Pandora’s Box. They might not like what they find inside.
Article by Coach B
Senior Writer – HornSports.com
email:Â coachb@hornsports.com
Follow me on Twitter: @CB_HornSports
