Monday was a rough day for the Nittany Lions.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) yesterday announced long-anticipated sanctions against the sex scandal-sullied Pennsylvania State University football program.
Although the football program escaped absolute obliteration, the NCAA issued severe penalties against Penn State, including a $60 million fine, the surrender of all football victories from 1998 to 2011, a ban on postseason play for four years and a limit on the number of football scholarships the school can award.
The NCAA also said the school’s scandal should alert other universities to consider whether their athletic programs are “too big to fail,” similar to financial companies that have teetered on the brink over the past few years. The committee made it clear that the Penn State scandal was the last straw in its tolerance for ethical failures in university sports programs.
“We’ve had enough,” said Edward Ray, the president of Oregon State and the NCAA executive committee chairman. “This has to stop.”
NCAA President Mark Emmert echoed the sentiment. “I certainly hope it is a cautionary tale to all of us that we need to keep our eye on our values. We all have to remember that we can’t let our love of the games get ahead of the core values, and we know that happens often. This is a painful, painful reminder that awful things can happen when that occurs.”
Read Sports Illustrated and the New York Times for more about the penalties against Penn State.
For more InsideCounsel coverage of the Penn State scandal, read:
Penn State GC criticized in report
Former Penn State assistant coach to sue university
Lessons from the Penn State scandal
Alleged sexual assault victims considering lawsuit against Penn State
