We all love to see the embarrassing “Not Top 10″ plays where a player, say, picks up a football and runs it into the wrong endzone. It’s lighthearted fun that no doubt leaves the player feeling a bit sheepish for a little while. But sometimes, sports programs find themselves embroiled in much deeper, much more disgraceful scenarios of their own design. These highly public embarrassments can ruin lives, cost schools thousands or millions of dollars, and leave the entire...
Despite the crippling penalties aimed at bringing Penn State football to a crawl, the Nittany Lion coaching staff added its first prospect post-NCAA sanctions to its 2012 class. Linebacker Brennan Franklin, who hails from Arizona’s Peoria Centennial High, committed to Penn State earlier this week. The 6-foot-2, 235-pound inside linebacker is leaving for Happy Valley today. The coaching staff, the presence of team unity, and a chance to be part of something special undoubtedly convinced Franklin to play ball...
According to ShreveportTimes.com, the city of Grambling filed a formal petition to the NCAA requesting that the college governing body vacate some of Joe Paterno’s record 409 Division I victories. In doing so, this would allow for Grambling’s Coach Eddie Robinson to reclaim college football’s winningest coach crown. Joe Paterno surpassed Robinson’s 408 victory mark just two weeks before he was fired for his part in the Jerry Sandusky debacle. Now that the Freeh report exposed Paterno’s role, the city of Grambling wants the record restored to honor...
Ideally, colleges should be well-known, desirable, and popular because of the high quality of educational resources they offer students and other members of the community. Yet, here in the U.S. that’s not always the case. Many schools’ academic programs are eclipsed by the overwhelming popularity of their sports teams, and for better or worse that has made the coaches and head administrators of these teams incredibly powerful figures that dominate what has now become a billion-dollar industry for colleges...
The Freeh report concluded that the top brass at Penn State failed to protect children from a sexual predator in order to protect the integrity of the school’s flagship and highly profitable football program. In its complete failure, Penn State and its senior administrators are now tangled in criminal matters with lengthy civil suits forthcoming, but what will happen to the football program? The Freeh report may have made a compelling case for the NCAA to sanction PSU for...
Say what you want about Joe Paterno, but when he passed away on January 22, 2012, the college football world lost an icon. The Penn State alumni magazine finally took appropriate action by paying tribute to the legendary coach. The March/April 2012 issue of The Penn Stater is fully dedicated to coach Joe Paterno and all the lives he positively affected. In the words of former PSU QB Todd Blackledge, “no one individual has ever done more for a university...
In the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, Penn State president Rodney A. Erickson recently launched a new web site, http://openness.psu.edu/, that offers readers complete access to key financial and contractual documents that were historically blocked from public view. Erickson stated that this web site is a “commitment to open communication” responsive to harsh criticism that Penn State’s internal operations were held in secret. Documents available are unedited and complete in nature to include the cost of the scandal....
With the college football world mourning the death of legendary coach Joe Paterno, one disgraceful group is celebrating his passing and plans to stage a protest during his funeral. Upon learning of Paterno’s death, the Westboro Baptist Church (“WBC”) tweeted to the nation that “He’s in Hell.” The fiery Margie Phelps, the daughter of WBC Pastor Fred Phelps and general counsel, regaled Paterno’s passing by publishing some disturbing tweets. The WBC, based in Topeka, Kansas, is known for its extreme and controversial views and sends its message...
