Today unprecedented steps were taken against the Penn State football program shortly after the Freeh report was released following an investigation into what was and was not known regarding the horrific acts of  Jerry Sandusky, former defensive coordinator at the university.

The question that seems to be running in conversations abound is if the moves were adequate and proper given the circumstances.  While the consequences were tough and outweigh those enforced recently during NCAA reprimands of other universities such as Ohio State and USC, for example, I'm not so sure they were the right ones.

Certainly what took place during those years from the acts of Sandusky to the cover up imposed by top officials in Happy Valley far surpass the acts of illegal benefits or "Tattoo Gate", this issue is one of morality and a failure of leadership.

It seems to me that by reducing scholarships and banning bowls, the consequences are falling on those who had little if anything to do with the awful events that occured.  I think the focus has been too much on football and too little on the issue of leaders failing to be leaders.

In the Freeh reports, suggestions were made to Penn State to change it's approach to be more transparent in the way issues are to be reported and handled so that these terrible happenings do not occur again.  Top officials at the university agreed that the changes were needed and vowed to begin implementing actions to change the culture.

It seems to me that a temporary "death penalty" would have been more beneficial to take the proper time to review what need to happen and then implement the changes and show that sincerity to change is valid.  Actions speak louder than words and while not making changes would only hurt even more the image that these horrible human beings wanted to maintain at the sacrifice of innocent young children, the focus appears to have shifted to football and not what is most important at this point.

Taking the focus from football and working diligently to bring change would show what is most important  to everyone.

There will be opposing views and a concise answer to handle all that has occurred may not be clear but one thing that is certain is that by not temporarily suspending the program and taking what has now been issued by the NCAA has, in my opinion, set a football program back even further.

It will take years to get back on the recruiting trail to get top notch athletes to draw to the storied football program.  With no ability to get the national spotlight on their team for the next four years, many that seek to move to the next level will go elsewhere to attempt to be noticed when all of America is watching rather than go to a school that the country is watching for all the wrong reasons.

Will Penn State ever return?  I think they will.  The school will rebound, the football program will rebound and things will get better.  But time is needed for that to happen.  It is not something that will change overnight.  Many years of doing the right things will be needed to change the overall perception that has been tarnished by a select few.  Good luck in your endeavors. 


For all the victims that suffered at the hands of Sandusky, their lives have been affected in a way that is hard to understand unless you have been a victim yourself.  I hope only the best for those individuals and that with each day, their lives rebound in a positive manner.