If there is one thing that bears watching outside the confines of Nebraska football is, “how will fans around the nation receive Penn State when it plays its games on Saturdays?”
Of course, Husker fans will root against Penn State on November 10 when the Nittany Lions come to Lincoln. Since Penn State (like Nebraska) is in the Big 10 Conference, that’s all the excuse Husker fans need to root against Penn State. I could also bring up Mike McCloskey’s catch when he was “clearly” out of bounds in 1982 but how many fans under age 35 really remember that play? Then there was the 2002 game where Penn State routed the Huskers 40-7 in Happy Valley where various Nebraska fans were treated rudely by Lions fans.
In case you have been living in an igloo the last six months, Penn State has been a lightning rod because of the child abuse sex abuse scandal centered on former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky’s sexual assault of at least eight underage boys on or near university property. After an extensive grand jury investigation, Sandusky was indicted on 52 counts of child molestation dating from 1994 to 2009, though the abuse may date as far back as the 1970s.
Per the findings of the investigation, several high-level school officials were charged with perjury, suspended, or dismissed for allegedly covering up the incidents or failing to notify authorities. In the wake of the scandal, school president Graham Spanier was forced to resign, and head football coach Joe Paterno was fired late in the season. The trial of Sandusky on 52 charges of sexual crimes against children started on June 11. Four of the charges were subsequently dropped, leaving 48 counts remaining. On June 22, Sandusky was found guilty on 45 out of 48 counts of sexual abuse. Sandusky faces a minimum sentence of at least 60 years — at his age, effectively a life sentence.
The discovery of Sandusky’s crimes triggered a criminal investigation by the local United States Attorney, as well as a Department of Education probe into Penn State's response. Both investigations remain ongoing. The report of an independent investigation conducted by former FBI director Louis Freeh and his firm stated that Spanier and Paterno, along with athletic director Tim Curley and school vice president Gary Schultz, had known about allegations of child abuse on Sandusky's part as early as 1998, and were complicit in failing to disclose them. In so doing, Freeh said, the four men “failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade.”
I don’t think Paterno is an evil person, and for
most of his life lived with integrity but his mishandling of the Sandusky case
has came back to haunt him, big time. He misused his power and influence. It’s sad
for all the young boys who were abused and by Penn State as whole keeping this
issue hidden since 1998 is just plain unacceptable. By doing so, they allowed
more young boys to be abused.
The report stated they found no evidence that any of the leaders, Paterno, Spanier, and so on, ever sat down with Sandusky. It was discussed doing that, but no one did. Did it bother Paterno that Sandusky still had an office there, was still doing work for his foundation? Paterno can’t answer that question now, but how could he allow that to happen on his watch?
I am sure all Universities are redoing their policies and procedures as we speak. The number one lesson is, don’t cover up, take action quickly, call the authorities right away, and let the chips fall where they may. They should have told Sandusky immediately that he is not allowed back on campus, even way back in 1998. Back then the Campus Police did basically a cursory investigation. That should not have been handled by them, it should have been an outside investigation. Plus, nobody asked or appeared to be concerned about the boys. They were more concerned about saving Sandusky’s reputation and of course their own.
The report stated they found no evidence that any of the leaders, Paterno, Spanier, and so on, ever sat down with Sandusky. It was discussed doing that, but no one did. Did it bother Paterno that Sandusky still had an office there, was still doing work for his foundation? Paterno can’t answer that question now, but how could he allow that to happen on his watch?
I am sure all Universities are redoing their policies and procedures as we speak. The number one lesson is, don’t cover up, take action quickly, call the authorities right away, and let the chips fall where they may. They should have told Sandusky immediately that he is not allowed back on campus, even way back in 1998. Back then the Campus Police did basically a cursory investigation. That should not have been handled by them, it should have been an outside investigation. Plus, nobody asked or appeared to be concerned about the boys. They were more concerned about saving Sandusky’s reputation and of course their own.
As the season nears I wonder how college
fans around the country (not Nebraska fans or fans of other Big Ten teams) will
view the Penn State football team? Will they have distain for the program and
root against them or will they feel for the kids and new coach and root for
them?
They are opening against an excellent Ohio team that would appear to be the
favorite to, at minimum, win the MAC Eastern Division. Therefore, opening the
Bill O’Brien head coaching era with a loss is not out of the question.
There will be several camps: 1) Those
who will revile pretty much everything having to do with Penn State, 2) Another
that minimizes what happened, and, 3) Those who nuance it taking the view that
the perpetrators are gone, so move on. However, I think outside of Penn State
most people are pretty turned off by the football program. Bottom line, Penn
State football will be a divisive issue for a long time to come. A cloud of
disgrace will haunt the program and team for years, right or wrong.
I would suspect that most college
football fans will root against Penn State for the next couple of years, or so.
Unless it directly involves Nebraska, I
don't care about Penn State one way or another.
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