Puskas: Football, money still trump kids at Penn State

You can say this much for fans of Joe Paterno and Penn State — they just never stop.

Even in the face of what you’d think would be the smallest amount of shame and self-awareness, the Joebots have been relentless about restoring his good name and the victories the NCAA took away.

Relentless.

Imagine if someone — say, the most powerful man in Happy Valley or his so-called bosses — had demonstrated that much desire to protect children and stop a serial predator instead of devoting their energies to protecting the Nittany Lions football brand.

Those who defend Penn State seldom mention why the NCAA stepped in — overstepped, if you ask the Joebots — and penalized the university and its football program.

Here’s a little refresher course, now that both sides seem to feel enough time has passed and people with a conscience should just forget about it:

The NCAA stepped in because Jerry Sandusky raped young boys and those in power at Penn State did nothing to stop him.

Oh, wait. We’re not supposed to mention Jerry Sandusky and Penn State in the same sentence. It’s unfair to connect the dots in State College and it was unfair to penalize the football program built on a lie because:

Joe didn’t know.

Joe couldn’t conceive of a man raping a boy.

Joe was completely oblivious despite three decades of working, traveling and living side-by-side with Sandusky.

Sandusky wasn’t even working for the university then.

No one knew anything, even after Nittany Lions assistant coach Mike McQueary went to Paterno and told him what he saw in the showers at the football facility one night.

Paterno took that information to his bosses. He did what he was legally required to do.

You will note there is never a mention of a moral obligation.

Maybe the NCAA did go too far in punishing Penn State. But that’s only because so little was done when Sandusky was first unmasked for what he was.

As college sports’ major governing body, the NCAA had to do something. But really, aside from millions of dollars in fines and a bowl ban (which ended this season), what was done?

Paterno and the Nittany Lions had 112 victories vacated.

So what? Paterno died not long after he was fired. And who actually considers that the games Penn State won from 1998-2011 on his watch didn’t actually happen?

Those games were played and the Nittany Lions won them. But ever since the penalties were handed out, some Penn State fans cried foul.

Kids were raped and years later, we’re still arguing about a record book?

Vacating wins is silly and so is fighting in court to get them back. It just shows what is truly important to some people and that those people couldn’t care less about Sandusky’s victims.

It is disgusting what happened all those years in State College. Similarly disgusting is that while Sandusky is in prison, little else has changed.

Football and money trumped children when a predator roamed free at Penn State.

Football and money are still the guiding principles there.

Write Vindicator Sports Editor Ed Puskas at epuskas@vindy.com and follow him on Twitter, @EdPuskas_Vindy.