Penn State: An Opinion

Allow me to start by saying that it's impossible to add much to the discussion surrounding Penn State. In the time frame since I started typing this post on Wednesday night, Joe Paterno went from "retiring at the end of the season" to "fired." Events are moving so rapidly that by the time you read this post, it might be laughably out of date. Even so, I feel that it's important for anyone who enjoys sports at any level to get involved in a discussion regarding sports and morality, and if this post starts one of those discussions, then it has accomplished its mission.

First, we must assume that the accused party, Mr. Sandusky, is merely "the accused" until he is proven otherwise. It is nauseating to many that we must do so, but that assumption is what separates the American system of justice from the despotic methods used in other, less-fortunate parts of the world. If we were accused of a crime, we would want a fair trial. Like it or not, Mr. Sandusky is entitled to the same, and we would all do well to remember that, even if he quickly confesses to the crimes of which he has been accused.

What we are witnessing at Penn State is a tragedy for reasons that are utterly unrelated to sports. The victims of these crimes of abuse will bear the emotional scars for the remainder of their lives. Amidst the hullabaloo of coaches and school officials getting fired it's going to be easy to forget that the victims' health cannot, in many cases, ever be fully restored. Regardless of one's feelings regarding Paterno, Sandusky, Penn State, or college football in general, we must not shuffle the victims along like the MacGuffins in a sordid tale of corruption at the top. They are human beings, and deserve to be treated as such. Remember that they are the victims of a disturbingly common crime, and that their high-profile case should not serve to mask thousands of others like them who go quietly unnoticed because they are abused by a scoutmaster or sales clerk instead of a football coach.

The sports aspect of the story goes far deeper, I believe, than anyone cares to recognize. We accept that our sports culture, especially that of college football, is one that is tainted. Scandals at major universities throughout the nation defined this offseason, and each was treated by fans with the knowing sigh of a man walking down a well-tread path. We laugh, joke, prod, and kid about the infidelities of these institutions, as though corruption and dishonesty are just little sideshows we must endure between games. I confess that I have taken this attitude, and in retrospect it sickens me that I, that we, could be so flippant. Accepting dirtiness is what led us here. Believing that college football would always be a look-the-other way culture has enabled the permanent scarring of dozens of children in Pennsylvania. Taking minor violations as "facts of life" in sports has come back to kick us between the teeth.

Football fans move on quickly. I guess it's the nature of the fast-paced game, coupled with a 24-hour sports media that bombards us with every story until we're sick of it. We will, as fans of the game, move on from this grim milestone. Joy will return to Happy Valley and to college football in general, but with that joy should come wisdom. This is our opportunity to make something positive of this tragedy, to stop shrugging off minor violations, to stop turning our heads from truths we don't want to see, and to make the sport something we can enjoy without having to feel guilty about it later.

Let's make the most of that opportunity.