What a mess we have here at Penn State.
As news of Jerry Sandusky’s arrest broke, members of the news media waited for a news conference.
We’re still waiting. In the days and hours since the biggest scandal in the history of college athletics broke, we kept hoping that someone at the university would hold a news conference to address this mess.
Nothing.
In today’s edition of Morelli OnLion, we’ll take a closer look at the scandal and the fact that no one has spoken.
The Sound of Silence
Happy Valley is a not-so-happy place these days.
A sex scandal has rocked the Penn State football program to its core. In the days since former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky was officially charged with sexually abusing eight boys over a period of 15 years, many dominoes have begun to fall.
Here’s what is chronicled in a grand jury report: In 2002, a graduate assistant told Penn State coach Joe Paterno that he had witnessed Sandusky sexually abusing a boy (estimated age: 10) in a shower at the Lasch Building, the Penn State football complex. Paterno told his boss, athletic director Tim Curley. On Monday, Penn State senior vice-president Gary Shultz and Curley surrendered to state authorities on charges that they failed to alert police to the complaint about Sandusky.
For what it’s worth, Paterno followed proper procedure. He alerted his boss about what the grad assistant witnessed. Then, he washed his hands of it.
Many, though, have questioned what the icon’s moral obligations were. After all, he never called university police, never followed up with Curley.
Although he was no longer on staff at Penn State, Sandusky maintained an office in the football complex, had a parking pass and unfettered access to the football facilities. Only over the past weekend was Sandusky told that he could no longer set foot on campus.
On Tuesday, media from around the country descended on State College for Paterno’s weekly news conference. They showed up in droves and lined up outside Beaver Stadium with the hopes of getting some answers.
At a normal Tuesday news conference, there are between 20 and 30 members of the media there. At 11 a.m. Tuesday, there were more than 200 members of the media present.
Instead of a news conference, we got a statement from Penn State assistant athletic director Jeff Nelson.
He told us: “Due to the ongoing legal circumstances centered around the recent allegations and charges, we have determined that today’s press conference cannot be held and will not be rescheduled.”
That’s simply not acceptable.
Just when we thought this couldn’t get any uglier for Penn State, it has. For a university that touts having “The Greatest Show in College Football” and “Success With Honor,” this is a black eye that will not go away. Not now. Not ever.
It’s high time for Paterno to sit down with reporters and answer the hard questions. It won’t be pretty, but it has to happen.
The university can no longer bury its head in the sand and hope that this will go away. It won’t.
This scandal is not about trading rings and jerseys for tattoos. It’s not about cash being given to five-star recruits.
No, this scandal is about defenseless children being abused while those in power sat by and did nothing.
It’s time we get some answers.
Chris Morelli is an award-winning writer/editor who lives in Centre County and covers Penn State athletics for gantnews.com. He’s also a regular on “Sports Central,” which airs on ESPN Radio in Altoona and State College. E-mail him at morellionlion@gmail.com. Also, be sure to check out Morelli OnLion on Facebook!