Paterno and the money grab
A $5.5 million package with only $3 million as the actual buyout is not a huge buyout. (A similar retirement package was undoubtedly in the previous contract).
At one point Rich Rod's buyout was $4 Million without a retirement package.
Still a shady move when you know what's coming, but not a "huge" buyout compared to other coaches contracts.
A $5.5 million package with only $3 million as the actual buyout is not a huge buyout. (A similar retirement package was undoubtedly in the previous contract).
At one point Rich Rod's buyout was $4 Million without a retirement package.
The problem may be between my ears, but when I read the NYT article it seemed that JoePa negotiated with Spaniers that if JoePa left, PSU would pay JoePa $3M, plus the loan forgiveness ($350K) and luxury suite, among other things. This was to buy out one year remaining on a contract, at PSU's expense, and at a premium to the benefit of JoePa.
With RichRod, it worked the opposite way. If RichRod jumped ship for another program, RichRod had to pay UofM $4M. Unless I'm missing something, this is apples-and-oranges. If I am missing something, please reply or if some other commentor wants to explain.
If RichRod was fired after the Ohio State game he would have been paid $4 Million. He was still paid $2.5 million to get the hell out of Ann Arbor.
Even if JoePa did not restructure his contract and was fired or stepped down, he would likely have received a similar multi-million dollar retirement package in addition to whatever the buyout was before the renegotiation, which one would presume was over a million dollars.
EDIT: (I see your point now) One would have to assume that this buyout package was not available if JoePa was to leave for another job and that Penn State wanted Joe Pa to leave after the 2012 contract either way. Otherwise that's a fucking stupid thing to put in a contract.
this article exposes the gravy train behind the cover-up. Anyone still backing Joe and the Paternos after reading this is crackers.
I did this other day and got flamed. What's another flaming? :)
Suggested Penn State summary:
* Jerry Sandusky: Creep/sociopath.
* Joe Paterno: Very good football coach, very bad man.
* Spanier et al.: Bad men.
Shall we move on? Did I miss anything? I realize it's the offseason, but these posts are getting tiring.
to the case that Joe Paterno was fully aware of what was happening and was doing what he could to protect himself and the football program rather than Sandusky's victims. New information is welcome, I think, because the case against Paterno is somewhat circumstantial -- hence Freeh's comments that "it is more reasonable to conclude" (emphasis mine) that there was a purposeful cover-up -- and this adds to the evidence. It is looking increasingly more reasonable that Freeh's conclusions are correct.
Though the burden of proof is too large, you have to look into the disappearance of Ray Gricar 6 years ago in a different light now. When the Sandusky news was breaking, this was an interesting side note.
How unlikely is it that Ray Gricar's disappearance is not tied to the Jerry Sandusky stuff? I very strongly believe that a scandal the size of the PSU debacle has many unturned stones. I wouldn't be surprised in the least to find that someone at PSU knows exactly where this guy (or his remains) is currently located. In case you do not know Ray Gricar:
Yes, you did miss something. The horse may well be dead (some might dispute that), but it's not tenderized yet. I'm going to keep flailing away until that horse meat is as soft as butter.
I disagree....the horse isn't dead at all. Anyone thinking that way obviously put a blind eye to the Freeh report and how early in the process this sordid tale really is.
Before Thursday, and a few leaked emails which should have only been disclosed Thursday, this matter was largely about a pedophile, a couple of PSU officals who may have perjured themselves and a coach who wished he "had done more". As of Thursday, the whole equation changed and it changed big time. Paterno and others were shown to have actively concealed what was transpiring. What Paterno did and said should have made him the subject of criminal conduct. Why he wasn't prosecuted is another matter altogether.
I would be very surprised if more charges aren't forthcoming.
Then there will be the civil cases and the facts that, unable to be hidden with 5th Amendment rights, will yield even more information as to the ugly behind the scenes machinations that were done. The PSU board of trustees is going to be scrutinized, second guessed and should all be fired.
How about action from the B1G and the NCAA.....I don't know if this type of activity falls within the scope of the NCAA's sanctions, but if it does, is this not the ultimate case for loss of institutional control and the death penalty? Crap, it only went on for 13 or 14 years.
The NYT article the OP posted is yet another instance of what was going on. So, for those thinking this is about a dead horse, I would suggest otherwise.
How many different times do we need to have the same argument between the same posters regarding whether or not PSU deserves the death penalty?
I think that the "death penalty" conversation is not ripe yet and won't be until all the facts are brought out. It may be a year or more until the full story, at least the public one, is known. Thursday's Freeh report brought a very different set of information to the forefront.
If there is a bigger story in college sports, point me to the link (and no, Kate Upton dancing doesn't count).
you didn't read the article, which is beating a whole buncha new, ugly horses and pretty much dispels the last whiff of virtue that clung to Old Joe.
I think you mean murdered...
he could of stopped it. that would be like one of us watching an adult punch kids outside of our homes and doing nothing about it.. i agree he didn't do it, but to be an enabler is just as bad.
Evil winning when good men do nothing. I'm not even sure Paterno was a good man.
He clearly had professional as well as ethical responsibilities he failed to discharge. He deserves an absurd amount of blame. I'll be shocked if his statue's still up at the end of the month.
Ah, now there's a lesson to teach your grandchildren, aamichfan. Good luck with that one.
the estate may not have much left after paying all the legal fees.
JoePa' aversion to email might be his family's savior, unless Curly, Schultz or Spanier decide to come clean.
You go after the school because it has much deeper pockets than the Paternos. Just the way patients go after pharmaceutical companies instead of physicians even though physicians prescribed off-label.
Beat that horse!
"In the end, the board of trustees - bombarded with hate mail and threatened with a defamation lawsuit by Mr. Paterno's family - gave the family virtually everything it wanted, with a package worth roughly $5.5 million. "
Wow. The money meant more to the Paterno family than the victims of Sandusky - there is something sick about that, but at the same time, it no longer shocks me that this would be the case. They really have shut down and stopped processing new information in that family, it seems. Even in Joe's death, the school and its board could not stand up to that family. In an odd way, that puts much of the breakdown in management (and conscience) in perspective.
I wonder whether there were any candid discussions with Sue Paterno over his contract negotiation, and whether the impending grand jury testimony was brought up at all. Not to paint her with the same brush as her husband, but it seems a little more likely now that she knew everything was going to hit the fan before it actually did.
I thought those Penn State students who rioted when they fired JoePa looked like idiots then. Now they're really looking stupid. The saddest part is a lot are still defending him
"We have to let a number of months pass, and we'll address it again."
What a load of crap. In a few months, there will be more revelations about this mess. They're coming. I don't have a doubt about that.
Penn State doesn't realize how horrible they'll look keeping that statue up.