The NCAA has decided to gradually reduce the scholarship sanctions it levied against Penn State following the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.
The landmark sanctions, which were handed down in July 2012, still require the university to pay a $60 million fine and keeps in effect a five-year postseason ban, but Penn State will be allowed to slowly restore the 20 annual scholarships that were taken away. The scholarship reductions, lowering the number available from 85 to 65, were for four years.
“Beginning next academic year [2014-15], five additional initial scholarships will be restored to the university’s football team,” the university said in a release Tuesday. “This amount will continue to increase until they reach the full allocation of 25 initial in 2015-16 and 85 total football scholarships in 2016-17.”
Former U.S. Senator George Mitchell, who oversaw baseball’s Mitchell Report investigation of steroids and has been serving as Penn State’s athletics integrity monitor, recommended the reduction, which was endorsed by the Division I Board of Directors.
“Providing relief from the scholarship restrictions will give more student-athletes an opportunity to attend Penn State on athletics scholarship while also creating an incentive for the university to continue its progress under new leadership after President Erickson’s impending departure,” Mitchell said in the official release.
“While there is more work to be done, Penn State has clearly demonstrated its commitment to restoring integrity in its athletics program. The university has substantially completed the initial implementation of the Freeh report recommendations and its obligations to the Athletics Integrity Agreement, so relief from the scholarship reductions is warranted and deserved.”
At a meeting in July, Penn State coach Bill O’Brien asked the university’s board to appeal to the NCAA to reduce the football sanctions. He expressed his relief over Tuesday’s announcement on a conference call with Big Ten reporters.
“Since I was hired here, we’re just trying to do what’s right for the student-athletes here,” O’Brien said. “We’ve made mistakes. We’ve owned up to those. If we sent an improper text or made a [prohibited] phone call, we reported them right away. We’re certainly not perfect. I think we have a good leader here in [university president] Rod Erickson.
“We’re just trying to do the best job we can for Penn State every day.”
O’Brien has led the Nittany Lions to a 3-1 record this season, despite the limited talent, after an impressive 8-4 campaign in his first season.
“The goal has always been to ensure the university reinforces clear expectations and a daily mindset within athletics that the highest priority must be placed on educating, nurturing and protecting young people,” NCAA president Mark Emmert said. “The executive committee’s decision to restore the football scholarships provides additional education opportunities and is an important recognition of Penn State’s progress.”