Let me begin by establishing that I have no interest in or
connection to the Pennsylvania State University, other than being a fan of
college football. I have attended two games at Beaver Stadium, both against the
University of Akron, once in 1999 and once in the mid-2000s. I attended as a
student and later as an alumnus of Penn State’s opponent. I was a Florida State
Seminole as an undergrad until I transferred to Akron during my sophomore year.
I am not a fan or alumnus of Penn State and I am not motivated by the fact that
the university involved was Penn State. I would feel the same if the school had
been Louisiana-Lafayette, Utah, or Florida. The issue is not the school
involved but the legal and moral impetus behind the punishment.
I should also dispatch with the unfortunately necessary
caveats regarding Jerry Sandusky and the administration of Penn State. The
underlying acts were absolutely evil and the administrators that covered for
Sandusky and allowed the continuing abuse should be punished to the fullest
extent of the law. Any disapproval with the NCAA and its response should not be
taken as being soft on sexual abusers and those that enable them. Obviously.
