freeh report tarnish patterno reputation

Freeh report tarnish patterno reputation full#
Freeh report tarnish patterno reputation professional#

The NCAA based its landmark sanctions on those findings, levying the school with a four-year bowl ban, significant scholarship cuts and a $60 million fine, among other penalties.Įach of the seven questions during the comment period related in some way to the scandal, and many dealt specifically with either the Freeh report or the sanctions. The roughly 30-minute question and answer period showed fault lines in a Penn State community still anguished by Freeh's findings in July. 'While we are moving forward on my many fronts,' Peetz said, 'we accept the consequences of failure and we are remedying any wrongs.' The trustees allotted time for public comment for the first time at one of their meetings, part of what trustees have said was a concerted effort to increase transparency. University leaders faced pointed questions from the public about their handling of Freeh's report and the resulting NCAA sanctions that punished the school's venerable football program. Sandusky is awaiting sentencing in jail after being convicted of 45 criminal counts in June. We're going to allow that process to play out in the courts.'ĭambly said Freeh, also a former federal judge, was hired as an independent investigator with the goal of finding out 'who knew what when,' as well as suggesting changes in governance and administration 'so that nothing like this would happen again.' 'The four people spoken about most in the report, we're certainly not going to take a position on their guilt or innocence,' trustee Mark Dambly later told reporters. Paterno's family and the officials have firmly denied the findings, which also have been questioned by many alumni. Penn State trustees on Friday promised to move forward with a detailed evaluation of changes recommended by former FBI director Louis Freeh in response to the child sex-abuse scandal that tarnished the university's reputation.Īt the same time, chairwoman Karen Peetz said the board wouldn't do a detailed analysis of Freeh's scathing report, which concluded that the late football coach Joe Paterno and three other school officials concealed child molestation allegations against retired defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.

Imagine that an assistant coach of, say, the chess team were caught showering with an 11-year-old boy, as Sandusky was in 1998.STATE COLLEGE, Pa. In a letter he wrote before his death, apparently intended as an op-ed piece, Paterno argued that whatever people might think of his actions in the Sandusky matter, 'this is not a football scandal.' He was especially proud of his football program's record as a model: Penn State avoided the recruiting scandals that involved so many other schools with top-ranked athletic programs, and his football players graduated at an admirable rate. His Nittany Lions won two national championships and made 37 bowl appearances. Paterno's 409 wins are the most of any Division I coach. He was head coach at Penn State for 46 years until being fired last year after Sandusky was arrested and the charges against him made public. It goes without saying that Paterno's legacy is forever tarnished.

Freeh report tarnish patterno reputation full#

'If university leaders had not granted Sandusky full use of Penn State's football facilities and supported his ways to 'work with young people through Penn State,' sexual assaults of several young boys on the Penn State campus might have been prevented.' According to Freeh's report, Sandusky 'was allowed to have a key for, and continued to work out in' the athletic complex until November of last year. University officials didn't even follow through on the inadequate response of cutting off Sandusky's access to Penn State facilities. Note the word 'guests,' which may be one of the most chilling euphemisms I've ever heard.

Freeh report tarnish patterno reputation professional#

The other three men allegedly involved in the cover-up - former Athletic Director Tim Curley and former Vice President Gary Schultz, both of whom face perjury charges, and former university President Graham Spanier - had decided to notify state child-welfare officials, according to Freeh, who had access to private emails and notes.īut before any action was taken, Curley wrote to Schultz and Spanier that 'after giving it more thought and talking it over with Joe,' he had decided he would be more 'comfortable' meeting with Sandusky, counseling him to get professional help and telling him 'his guests are not permitted to use our facilities.'