According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the NCAA, Pennsylvania officials and Penn State are “in talks to reconsider” the punishment handed down by the NCAA in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal. The punishment included stripping 111 wins from Paterno’s record (and 112 from Penn State overall), heavy scholarship reductions (which have since been restored), and a $60 million fine.
In addition to potentially restoring Paterno’s wins, there is a proposal being discussed to keep the $60 million fine “within the state and university to be used for child protection.” There has been an ongoing legal battle on the allocation of that fine money and whether to keep it in the state of Pennsylvania or distributed nationally.
Per the Inquirer, the talks to restore Paterno’s wins “seemed designed to stave off a looming court battle.”
That court battle appears to be the upcoming trial stemming from a lawsuit filed by Pennsylvania State Treasurer Robert McCord and State Sen. Jake Corman which challenged the consent decree that Penn State signed in order to avoid receiving the death penalty from the NCAA. Instead, the school agreed to the unprecedented sanctions, which were levied in July 2012.
Paterno’s win total, which was a Division I record-setting 409 before the NCAA stepped in, has been a major source of contention among some Penn State alumni.
Paterno, who was fired by the school’s board of trustees in November 2011 as the scandal unfolded, passed away on January 22, 2012, at the age of 85.
For more Penn State news, visit BlueWhiteIllustrated.com.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
From Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo Sports - Report: NCAA is considering restoring Joe Paterno's vacated wins
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