Penn State University has been the subject of much criticism in recent months because of the recent NCAA sanctions it had imposed on the football program. The NCAA did find that Penn State coach James Franklin knew about the nature of the showers that took place on the university’s campus long before he ever took over the team. Franklin also knew about these showers from the start of his tenure as the Nittany Lions’ head coach, even after the NCAA’s announcement regarding the sanctions. In short, the NCAA found beyond a reasonable doubt that Franklin and other current and former university officials violated NCAA rules regarding academic and athletic contact when they did nothing to stop this behavior and didn’t take any measures to reprimand their former players who were guilty of this conduct. As you can imagine, this is a major violation of NCAA rules, which means Penn State could be facing some very serious penalties down the road.
So how should college athletics administrators and coaches handle these situations? Let’s look at how former Penn State coach Joe Paterno was treated following the NCAA announcement regarding the sanctions. According to Paterno’s attorney, it appears that the NCAA’s harsh punishments on Penn State were designed to force the school to close its doors. Paterno, along with many other former Nittany Lions athletes and staff, have filed suits against the NCAA and its members, hoping that the courts will protect them from what is clearly a clear case of academic and athletic fraud. As you may imagine, these suits are being considered very seriously by legal experts.
It’s important to remember that there are two sides to a story. When you hire an attorney to represent you in a defamation or public official misconduct lawsuit, it’s important to understand that you don’t always need to have evidence of actual malice in order to win your case. Many times a simple email or letter of complaint will suffice to show that there has been a history of harassment or hazing, even if no physical harm has ever taken place. The fact that the current situation at Penn State may be one of numerous recent incidents does not necessarily mean that future occurrences will also be covered by the class action lawsuit that former Nittany Lions players and faculty members filed against Penn State University and the college.
In fact, the latest developments at Penn State don’t appear to be an isolated incident. It appears that there may have been a culture of hazing at the Penn State football facility for quite some time, prior to the recent complaints and arrests. This is much more than a recent problem. In fact, it appears to have been an underlying culture within the walls of the football facility for years. According to former players, the recruits were routinely subjected to relentless hazing by coaches and other support staff, as well as being ridiculed and teased by other players on campus.
Additionally, former Nittany Lions players claimed that coaches made jokes at the expense of female recruits, referring to them as “tennis shoes”, “hoes” and other degrading terms. Additionally, many times during games, offensive plays were called out to intentionally make the opposing team feel guilty for being offended or ridiculed by the coaches. Coaches routinely made jokes at the expense of female recruits, referred to as “tennis shoes”, “hoes” and other degrading terms. Coaches routinely made jokes at the expense of female recruits, referred to as “tennis shoes”, “hoes” and other degrade terms.
While the NCAA and Big Ten Conference are looking into the claims brought forth by former Nittany Lions football players, the NCAA has also received significant reports of recent occurrences of sexual harassment occurring within its conferences. These reports have caused a heightened duty to act with extraordinary swiftness and resolve. The recent disturbing actions at Penn State are only the tip of the iceberg. I would urge all college coaches to immediately institute a zero tolerance policy, and strongly encourage you to research the situation in further detail.
