PSU AD Requests Leave of Absence
November 7th, 2011 at 7:24 AM ^
Paterno's contract is up after this season. My guess is that it wouldn't have been renewed before this incident, but now, the question of another year or two shouldn't even be an issue.
November 7th, 2011 at 5:26 AM ^
Considering what happened, theirs are positions which I would imagine should be effectively considered "open" now, unless PSU really wants an image problem.
November 7th, 2011 at 6:24 AM ^
is going to be fired. If they have an athletic department after this, there will not be one familiar face in it.
November 7th, 2011 at 6:48 AM ^
I wouldn't go that far. You'll see several new faces in management though (i.e., a decent round of cannings, but not a universal thrashing of the department). That's pretty clear, from what I've read.
November 7th, 2011 at 5:42 PM ^
Nothing less than the "scorched earth" approach would work for PSU, all the way down to the equipment managers and the janitors. Donors and parents of recruits would not stand for anything less.
I feel badly for the support staff who will lose their jobs because of this. Like McQueary, they have probably made the same private whispers about Sandusky's behavior. However, Spanier, Joe Pa, Curley, and all the others elected to "protect one of their own". The whole episode will end badly.
November 8th, 2011 at 9:04 AM ^
are absolutely right. Not to relocate this to a football conversation, but keep refreshing your Penn State rivals site to see the decommits pile up in the upcoming weeks. It is going to take Penn State's athletic department longer than any of us will be around to see to recover from this. They have to accept that now, and must utilize the nuclear option ASAP. I am actually surprised that Joe Pa is going to appear at his weekly presser. I think Joe Pa may actually be in danger in public, and I am not kidding.
November 7th, 2011 at 6:36 AM ^
respect for Joe Pa...Talk about overshadowing his accomplishments...Just a bad situation all around.....
November 7th, 2011 at 10:29 AM ^
Just maybe an accusation like that would warrant more involvement than passing the information to the AD. There is no excuse for this.
November 7th, 2011 at 12:11 PM ^
we don't know what exactly the GA told Joe Pa, and how that translated into Joe Pa's head. Also, we don't know what feedback Joe Pa recevied from the AD or the VP.
For example, if they told Paterno they have investigated the matter, and passed it onward without specifying to whom (they did pass it on to the charity but not the authorities), found it to be "horseplay" and taken administrative punitive action, he may have assummed it was taken care of sufficiently without digging into the details.
My point is, the grand jury report only contains the one line from Paterno. He did say "fondling or doing something of a sexual nature to a young boy". That should have been enough for the AD to report to the police as required by the law.
Joe Pa's case is more gray to me. The AD's is black and white. And unless Campus Police / Security report to the VP of Finance, the only reason I can see that the VP was involved was to "protect" the interests of the university (i.e., clear ethical conflict). (Note: the VP's case may be muddy as well, as it is not as clear what the VP had been directly told.)
November 7th, 2011 at 8:09 AM ^
Will the University still pay their legal fees? That to me is the big question. I can't for the life of me understand why they would given what that they are being accused of and now their resignations/LOA requests this morning.
To me at least, covering their sure to be enormous legal bill will be evidence of PSU's support of these scumbags. Going broke is the least that should happen to slime that allowed child abuse to continue unabated for 9 years.
November 7th, 2011 at 9:27 AM ^
I don't know what they school will do here, but they do have a pretty large interest in the outcome of this case. If these men are found guilty it opens the door wider for a lawsuit against the school (almost a slam dunk at that point) as well as confirming the bad image of the school and the athletic department.
The less these two are convicted of, the better it is for the school both in terms of liability and image.
November 7th, 2011 at 9:29 AM ^
Here's exactly what he said:
Tim Curley and Gary Schultz have my unconditional support. I have known and worked daily with Tim and Gary for more than 16 years. I have complete confidence in how they have handled the allegations about a former University employee.
November 7th, 2011 at 11:19 AM ^
I was a little suprised to see that no one had compared the Berry and Curley charges. Since they occurred just days apart.
Berry was charged with misdemeanor assault in Columbus. The team waited until he was charged, and then promptly suspended him. I think OSU did exactly the right thing.
Curley, having been indicted by a grand jury on felony perjury charges, ought to experience the same fate. The only difference being that Curley is not an athlete, and can't be "suspended" from intercollegiate competition. Berry was not dismsissed from his team (I think that is only fair), and I am not sure that there would be grounds to discharge Curley from his employment (maybe there is, if one were to read all of his grand jury testimony, which is usually kept sealed apart from official reports and indictments) before his guilt is established. Unless Curley's own testimony (as opposed to allegations by others or charges by a prosecutor) established a firing offense. And my understanding is that it hasn't.
Curley has to be suspended, with or without pay. (With pay would be my guess. And that is what is happening right now, right?) But beyond that, it gets into presuming somebody's guilt.
Longer term, the Curley era of PSU athletics is positively done.
Now can somebody explain to me why kids who aren't from Beaver Falls PA still pledge commitments to PSU? When nobody really knows who the coach will be or what kind of program there will be in the future? Forget about sanctions or program-penalties. Forget about local kids who dreamed of playing in Happy Valley their whole lives. And forget about Joe Pa personally; I don't understand how anybody could know who the freakin' position coaches will be next year. No kid now could possibly know what kind of offense or defense he may be playing in.
November 7th, 2011 at 1:28 PM ^
protestations that Paterno did what was required. Sandusky is using your beloved schools' facilities to do this stuff and you don't ring the alarm to the high heavens? I mean, someone is assaulting a kid in Michigan's locker rooms, what would you hope Hoke did? Tell Brandon and then not worry when Brandon did nothing? Hells no.
Also, you know this guy for decades and nothing more than that one incident is reaching you? I have serious doubts. You almost have to be blind on purpose, which amounts to negligence. . . exactly the kind of negligence you would fear with an Uncle Bernie kind of arrangement of that kind.
Point me to the line where I place my money that Paterno is done this year.
November 7th, 2011 at 2:46 PM ^
Gary Moeller says "NOW you tell me that?!?!"
The acts are so far from comparable, it's unearthly. But you embarrass the University, you're going to be out conviction or no. If you think even if found "not guilty beyond a reasonable doubt" is enough to not completely color everyone involved from a PR standpoint from here on out, you're kidding yourself and putting too much weight into a legal ruling. OJ wasn't doing many commercials after he was proven innocent.
And you can say all you want about the Duke case, but that's more a situation of they shouldn't be wrongfully prosecuted for something they didnt' do....but probably still deserved to be punished for actions embarrassing the whole school and program.
All these contracts have morals clauses....and it usually isn't dependent on conviction. I mean, if you don't smartly come to some terms of dismissal, and you want to sue over it, great....but I'm not sure how it's going to look in a court of law when they start digging up the sordid details again and making them even more public. So if you're planning on living off that hope, you better be sure you're 100% innocent of doing and knowing NOTHING. If I'm the University, I'm willing to take that chance, and gamble on any cost, to do damage control now.