OT - "unprecedented" penalties coming for PSU...

[Symphony Steve]

Regardless of whether or not we deem the penalties to be sufficiently harsh, I don't see that program ever being the same. The idea that some rich alums will just pony up the bucks makes little sense to me b/c they're not gonna get any kind of control for their $$'s, and we're talking a LOT of dollars. There will now be a permanent fissure between the Cult of Paterno and Everybody Else which can never be resolved. 50 years from now, they'll still be fighting over it. Which raises another question: To what degree will the faithful who took that trip every home weekend for 40 years continue to do so when Paterno has been scrubbed from the history? The history is being rewritten with White-Out as we speak. I also don't see the continuing influx of Pa's best players to Happy Valley. They don't have Ol' Joe to roll out there any more to impress impressionable youngsters. And they DO want to go to bowl games and compete for league championships, something I don't think they'll be able to do for a few years.

I, for one, am fine with a multi-year bowl ban,a meaningful football scholarship reduction, and some serious oversight. I'd like more, of course, but I think that both the school and the program have a long way to go before there will be any return to normalcy, especially as it pertains to being a football power.

 

[NKR1978]

Regardless of whether or not we deem the penalties to be sufficiently harsh, I don't see that program ever being the same. The idea that some rich alums will just pony up the bucks makes little sense to me b/c they're not gonna get any kind of control for their $$'s, and we're talking a LOT of dollars. There will now be a permanent fissure between the Cult of Paterno and Everybody Else which can never be resolved. 50 years from now, they'll still be fighting over it. Which raises another question: To what degree will the faithful who took that trip every home weekend for 40 years continue to do so when Paterno has been scrubbed from the history? The history is being rewritten with White-Out as we speak. I also don't see the continuing influx of Pa's best players to Happy Valley. They don't have Ol' Joe to roll out there any more to impress impressionable youngsters. And they DO want to go to bowl games and compete for league championships, something I don't think they'll be able to do for a few years.

I, for one, am fine with a multi-year bowl ban,a meaningful football scholarship reduction, and some serious oversight. I'd like more, of course, but I think that both the school and the program have a long way to go before there will be any return to normalcy, especially as it pertains to being a football power.

If there aren't truly crippling penalties against them there will be 109,000 cult members in Beaver Stadium chanting "We are JoePA!" every saturday this fall.

If you're interested in true delusion, check out the comments to some of the posts on Support Joe Paterno Facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Support-Joe-Paterno/183522358398264

 

[CaliCuse]

If there aren't truly crippling penalties against them there will be 109,000 cult members in Beaver Stadium chanting "We are JoePA!" every saturday this fall.

If you're interested in true delusion, check out the comments to some of the posts on Support Joe Paterno Facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Support-Joe-Paterno/183522358398264

Unfortunately it goes beyond delusion.They refuse to allow themselves the fact that Paterno was not the saint he was thought to be by the media, publicists and fans . He won some football games and duped everyone to think he was quality individual while all the time protecting his image by letting kids get raped by his in-house monster.

 

[Symphony Steve]

We're not talking a monolithic 'they' any more. There IS a lot of soul-searching going on. And, let's be honest, this can't be easy. The adulation of Paterno went far beyond his winning of football games. He was portrayed as a guy who read Plato, a guy who was equally dedicated to the scholastic side of things. I never bought it b/c I find that the people who put themselves on pedestals and claim some air of moral superiority are quite often those who are running from themselves and acting out of a sense of self-loathing. Regardless, a lot of people did. And many of them are no longer deluding themselves, but trying to place all of this in context. I know and like a lot of Penn State grads, and they're struggling with this. The one eternal Penn State truth turned out to be neither eternal nor true. Yes, there will still be the caravan of RV's headed up there, but I think it's gonna be significantly smaller, and recent grads and current students are especially unlikely to embrace that tradition. Blind trust is a thing of the past, and that's good.

If I sound overly-fascinated by all this, it's b/c I am. I have a feeling that this scandal and its aftermath will become something taught on college campuses all over the country for a real long time. I certainly hope that Happy Valley takes the lead on it. IMHO, through THAT lies redemption.

 

[texascpa]

I wonder if some of the punishment is also geared towards on-site and in-home recruiting restrictions. Seeing as many of the crimes occurred on-campus and technically players are generally still minors when being recruited, I wonder if the NCAA will ban PSU from allowing potential players on campus to visit the facilities and meet with coaches.

I keep reading that the penalties will be above and beyond bowl restrictions, lost schollies and dollar penalties. Just wondering what those other penalties will be.