Every year before, during, and after the college athletics season there are allegations swirling about how some student-athlete at some major school received improper benefits. Inevitably people start to speculate as to what the penalty would or should be if it's determined that the allegations are true. Depending on their allegiance to the school in question or its rival, people either call for harsh, tough sanctions or leniency. It is all subjective in the end because we all know that the NCAA isn't the fairest governing body in sports and and can be supremely hypocritical at times.
Typically, the kind of infractions that the NCAA metes out punishment for involve a student-athlete receiving money or something in-kind as an incentive to attend a certain school or as a show of appreciation from boosters. Many times this can include selling of memorabilia to a die-hard fan with deep pockets and influence in the surrounding community. Other times, these infractions occur when the student-athletes get what is commonly known as "the hook-up". Things ranging from free tattoos to the use of a car from a local car dealer without a car note to pay. They can be things as simple as being flown to a game and given tickets by a former teammate who is playing at the next level.
Some instances that most people are familiar with are the "death penalty" that SMU received in the 80s, where their entire football program was shut down for a year by the NCAA and for another year by the school itself for participating in what was basically a "pay for play" scandal. Many local businessmen and government officials contributed to what amounted to a payroll for SMU football players and when the NCAA got wind of it they doled out the harshest penalty possible...the death penalty. In addition, to the program being shut down for a year, SMU lost several scholarships and post season privileges. Another pretty infamous scandal involved former NBA and University of Michigan standout, Chris Webber along with 3 other players receiving money while playing at The University of Michigan. The scandal cost Webber his All-American 1993 honors, Robert Traylor his MVP awards in the 1997 NIT and 1998 Big Ten Tournament, as well as Louis Bullock's standing as the school's third all-time leading scorer and all-time leader in free throws and Big Ten all-time 3 point field goal leader. When Reggie Bush was found to have received improper benefits in the way of his parents being given a house during his time at USC, the NCAA imposed sanctions that included stripping 30 scholarships from the school, vacating wins, and a a 2-year bowl ban among other things. Bush even felt pressure to return the Heisman trophy that he earned on the field to the Heisman Trust. He eventually caved to the pressure and returned the award. Most recently, the Ohio State University football program came under fire from the NCAA for players receiving what amounts to "the hook-up". Coach Jim Tressel was given what amount to the death penalty for coaches, a 5 year "show cause" sanction where any school who wants to hire him has to show good reason why he should be allowed to be there coach and would face severe penalties if Tressel were to violate NCAA rules again because he turned his back to the players' activities.
You can add all of those scenarios up they still wouldn't compare to the egregious violations that took place at Penn State. Why? Because the only people who were involved in those scandals were student-athletes (who should be payed anyway) and boosters who have more money than they know what to do with. No one was hurt by their actions. However, when it comes to Penn State there were several people who were hurt physically and emotionally; namely the little boys, now young men who were sexually assaulted by former Penn State defensive coordinator, Jerry Sandusky.
What Sandusky did to those boys was not only perverse and disgusting, it was also prolonged. Sandusky molested and assaulted boys over a 15 year span, and officials at Penn State, including famed football coach Joe Paterno, knew about it. Not only did they know about it, they took measures to cover it up in order to protect their beloved football program. They showed little to no regard for the young boys lives who were being violated and ruined by Sandusky.
Recently, Penn State removed Joe Paterno's statue from outside Beaver Stadium. In addition, the NCAA levied severe penalties against the school and its football program which included a $60 million fine, bowl bans, loss of scholarships, 5 years of probation and vacation of all wins from 1998-2011. AND THEY DESERVED EVERY BIT OF IT, if not more.
For those who believe that things should have stopped once Jerry Sandusky was convicted, I say there would not have been a scandal were it not for the football program. Had Jerry Sandusky just been a professor or somehow employed by Penn State otherwise, I'm sure those that knew about his actions would have reported them immediately to the authorities. But, sense he was connected to their football program they chose to cover it up and turn a blind eye. I wish the NCAA had stripped them of the program for a year or two to make them get their priorities straight.
God bless the young men who endured this horrific act and all those like them. Life is bigger than football and the NCAA showed that they understand that with their sanctions against Penn State today. They don't always get it right, but today they did.
Well, that's The Green Chimp's take...what's yours?
submitted by D. Wright
I agree wholeheartedly!
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