Penn State 'Considering Options' Over NCAA Bluff

Alison Smith:

Penn State says it is considering its options after learning that the NCAA apparently was “bluffing” about the authority it had when it imposed record sanctions on the university in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal.

Sandusky, a former assistant football coach at Penn State, was convicted in June 2012 of 45 out of 48 counts of child sexual abuse, and is serving 30 to 60 years in state prison.

When Sandusky’s crimes came to light, longtime football coach Joe Paterno was fired, and the NCAA imposed record sanctions on the university: a four-year bowl game ban, a loss of the team’s scholarships and a $60 million fine. The bowl ban has since been lifted, and scholarships will return for the 2015-2016 season.

However, emails released this week show that the NCAA itself wasn’t sure it had the authority to impose such sanctions. The emails, all from July 2012, were released in connection with a court filing by state Sen. Jake Corman (R-34th), The Patriot News said.

In one of the newly released emails, NCAA Vice President for Academic Enforcement Kevin Lennon wrote to then-Director of Enforcement Julie Roe Lach: “I know we are banking on the fact that school is so embarrassed they will do anything, but I am not sure about that, and no confidence conference or other members will agree on any of that. This will force the jurisdictional issue that we don’t really have an answer to that one…” according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.

In a later email, Roe Lach wrote to Lennon, “”I characterized our approach to PSU as a bluff,” the Inquirer said.

“We find it deeply disturbing that NCAA officials in leadership positions would consider bluffing one of their member institutions, Penn State, to accept sanctions outside of their normal investigative and enforcement process,” Penn State President Eric Barron and Board of Trustees Chairman Keith Masser wrote in a statement. “We are considering our options.”

Barron and Masser emphasized that the university’s “commitment to the fight against child abuse and to the implementation of best practice governance, ethics and compliance programs and policies remains steadfast.”

Do you think the NCAA overstepped its bounds in imposing the record sanctions on Penn State?