Does anyone else get the feeling that the NCAA either has to give them death penalty or nothing at this point. I have a really really hard time believing that they will just take off scholarships or bowl ban for a couple years. I think that they are in a tough place due to the fact that even casual fans will be comparing the amount of ships taken or the length of the bowl ban to the amount of kids that were molested. I wouldn't be surprised to see them say it's out of their jurisdiction but I can't imagine the reaction they'll get if they say take 5 schollys a year for knowingly allowing a child predator to rape-around their locker room.

but i guess when was the last time the ncaa cared what people thought of it

Yes. It has to be the death penalty or nothing. If they find they have the jurisdiction to punish, then the harshest punishment possible is the only option.

The only way they avoid giving out the death penalty is if they find they don't have the jurisdiction to punish, in which case they can do nothing.

Paterno family should have taken a page from Amanda Knox's family and hired a $million PR firm from the get go.

I'd be very surprised if that happened. The NCAA's reputation at stake and they have to be seen as doing something. PSU won't fight a slap, but they would challenge the NCAA over the Death Penalty and then the NCAA would have to explain their jurisdiction in court.

Eh, seems like he's playing Devil's Advocate more so than anything else. He certainly admits that Freeh may be right rather than the Kool-Aid drinkers who immediately denounce him and stand by JoePa.

Dissenting opinion pieces on something so one-sided will always draw attention and most importantly, web page hits. Nice way to get your name out there. That's how Armond White makes his living reviewing movies and how Skip Bayless retains his job at ESPN as a sportswriter.

Yeah, pretty much this. You can't give a half-assed punishment if you're going to do it. I think it's more likely that they'll do nothing under the basis that it's out of their jurisdiction rather than take such a huge step and drop the death penalty on them.

you really think pedo state is going to march into court and argue lack of jurisdiction in regards to their massive cover up of child rape? even if the ncaa has a disincentive to go to court, pedo state is in an even worse position.

discovery will almost certainly be a disaster for pedo state. the cover-up will be open to discussion because the activities that occurred on campus property pertain to the jurisdictional issues in question. and if the victims can get their hands on those depositions, hello prison, so long endowment. who else is going to fight for them, the governor who probably should go to jail too? he's not bringing attention to himself and this case if he can avoid it. The BoT?

they need to just take the punishment they deserve and settle all of the civil suits as quickly as possible. given the culture in pedo valley, I expect that the exact opposite will occur.

i think it's very unlikely PSU appeals any punishment from the NCAA unless the NCAA like kicks them out or something

PR disaster, etc and what five4 said

I agree with your 2nd paragraph, but not the 1st. He's pretty adamantly attacking the integrity of the entire Freeh report.

I read the entire column and even went to the length of cross-checking his references to the Freeh report.

Even though I'll admit some bias, the entire editorial is absolute garbage. Some arguments he completely fabricates, others he ignores things on the VERY SAME cited Freeh report page and finally he has 0 understanding of what hearsay is and how it was handled in the trial.

It's just a disgustingly gross misrepresentation of the facts to get hits on the page, but it's 1 article the cultists can somehow cling to and smugly say "SEE WE'RE UNDER ATTACK HERE."

It's a joke. It's so horrible that I want to write a counter-piece, but I'm pretty sure that'd be a waste of my time.

I dunno, I still don't see any way in the world that the NCAA would ever shut down a program in the top 10 all-time in wins. For when, 2012? The season is six weeks away.

Yeah I do because PSU wouldn't be arguing on the merits. In fact they might be estopped (gagged) from doing so because they've already lost in a civil trial. They would just be arguing that the NCAA did not have jurisdiction or did not give them due process.

Its just a suspicion but I think the NCAA does not want their inner workings to undergo discovery.

None of us are arguing they don't have the legal grounds to appeal it. They absolutely would. Like we've all admitted: the NCAA rules aren't cut and dry. It would be left up to interpretation and whether or not they would win is unclear. (Although my guess is that the NCAA would prevail).

Our argument is, from a PR perspective, that they cannot possibly dispute the punishments.

Do you honestly think the general public will care that they aren't "arguing on the merits?" Half the general public probably doesn't even know what the word jurisdiction means.

No way PSU appeals any punishment that comes their way. They just want this to go away and be finished as quickly as possible. They're hoping that eventually the whole thing will be dropped by the mainstream media as soon as some other major story pops up. Fighting any punishment just prolongs the scandal and makes recovery time much longer than it already is.

Like some others I'm of the opinion the NCAA will deliver extremely harsh penalties or nothing at all.

How can they give like a few scholarship reductions or a few years bowl ban, comparable with other schools who's trangressiosn pale in comparison.

They'll either have to wave their hands and claim it's not in their jurisdiction and do nothing or drop some serious f'ing penalties.

They might make some sort of agreement with PSU that they'll go the "nothing" route if they self impose standard sancations or something though. Like PSU will 'voluntarily' sit out bowls and stuff for a few years in an attempt to appease folk.

it would be best for everyone involved if the NCAA and PSU come to an agreement where PSU self-imposes at least a 1 year ban and removes its own scholarships and stuff

helps PSU's image (taking responsibility), helps the NCAA's image (doesn't set any nasty precedent), makes sure everyone knows the punishment is just and all that (no arguments of overreaching from cultists)

if PSU and the NCAA are both smart and thinking long-term PR here, they'll prob pursue something like that. of course, PSU trustees will face the wrath of the minority cultists, but if they are truly interested in doing the right thing and repairing their long-term public image, im sure they won't have an issue with such a plan.

I don't think the cultists are a minority in HV.

I could easily see the NCAA releasing a statement that basically says that while the actions of the PSU 4 were reprehensible, they pale in comparison to the actions of Sandusky. Because of that fact, and because the legal system is going to deal with those 4 (well, 3) and has already dealt with Sandusky, a lighter (see: 2 yr. bowl ban, loss of 20 scholarships) is warranted for LoIC.

Would be a colossal cop out and send a horrible message, but that's basically the NCAA's slogan.

Today is "What about the Death Penalty?" What's the general public going to do, boycott their own team when PSU comes to visit?
PSU will take some type of bowl ban and do a public act of contrition but they would go to court over a DP, in a Pennsylvanian forum.


btw this is all gossip of the day. Anyone familiar with college football knows that the death penalty has been dead since 1989.

LOLOLOL the whole time I read that I was like hahah this guy is a moron they just elected this guy:



then i read your spoiler and lol'd.

The NCAA will probably give the death penalty to Duquesne for this.

Imagine if Chris Petersen failed to report public intoxication?

They just nailed Cal Tech to the wall this week, stupid nerds, Behold:

lolll lawhon continues to deliver. did anybody else get like a Liam Neeson/Taken vibe reading this?

Here's why the NCAA punished them:

i smell a blockbuster

Oh come on not this ACL crap. It's long done for. Let it die.