In last week’s court decision in the case that PA State Senator Jake Corman and others have filed against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) related to the sanctions imposed on Penn State in the wake of the Sandusky crimes, the judge’s ruling opens the door for NCAA President Mark Emmert to be deposed.
This decision may mean that, for the first time since the Sandusky crimes were made public, people who are in search of the truth will actually get to have their legal representatives ask Emmert some very important questions. He will then either be forced to answer those questions – under oath – or invoke his 5th Amendment rights against self-incrimination.
President Emmert. He’s the key figure in what some feel was an overstepping of both rational decision making and NCAA organizational boundaries in passing down the sanctions against the Penn State football team in the summer of 2012. With the reported ultimatum of a “football death penalty” if Penn State administration didn’t accept the debilitating sanctions, many have wondered how a former university president and “scholar” would make what appears to be emotional decisions beyond the purveyance of his organization and in contrast to what many consider to be the mission of higher education – evidence based results and conclusions.
I’m picturing a large, expensive conference table in a law office in some big city high rise. I see a bunch of lawyers, with legal pads, helping to prep Emmert for the possible questions that might come up in a deposition.
Lawyer: “”Okay. Let’s start out with the Freeh report. The Penn State Board of Trustees commissioned former FBI Director Louis Freeh to investigate what happened at Penn State related to the crimes committed by Jerry Sandusky. Why did the NCAA decide to use that report and not conduct its own independent investigation?”
Emmert: “Uh, it was cheaper? The NCAA is big money and big business. We figured since Penn State was already paying, why bother?”
Lawyer: “But wait, I can see from your phone and email records that the NCAA had contact with Freeh before the results of the report were made public. Doesn’t that look a little suspect?”
Emmert: “Can I have a cup of coffee?”
Lawyer: “Penn State football had never had any NCAA infractions – none. No recruiting violations. No point shaving or athletes taking money from alumni or selling their rings or their jerseys. No fake classes for student athletes. Nothing like LSU where there were allegations about advisors writing papers for student athletes. That happened under your tenure as LSU’s chancellor, right? LSU had to pay those whistleblowers over $100,000 each right? In fact, Penn State’s graduation rate for student athletes was among the highest in the country. Wasn’t this a legal issue and not one for a member organization that oversees sports on college campuses?”
Emmert: “That darn Joe Paterno and his Grand Experiment. Success with honor for 50 years? He made the rest of us feel bad. I had it up to here with that football culture.”
Lawyer: (Shuffles papers). “A Research One level university with cutting edge science in cancer treatment, top programs in engineering and agriculture, record setting student philanthropies, state of the art interventions and research in health and wellness, a law school, 24 campuses, a top business school and the biggest alumni association in the world. I don’t understand what you mean by Penn State’s Football Culture.”
Emmert: “Next question.”
Lawyer: “Okay. Let’s go back to the Freeh report. The NCAA made the decision about sanctions based on a report in which the investigators did not talk to any of the key figures – the three administrators who have still not been tried for their alleged crimes or coach Paterno. What about the report seemed credible to you?”
Emmert: “My good friend and former colleague Vicky Triponey called that one. Didn’t you see her interview? She was the only person who ever stepped forward to say that JoePa used his power at Penn State in a negative way.”
Lawyer: “Speaking of students, many people have asked how removing the wins from former players or eliminating scholarships and banning bowl participation from current students (all of whom were children at the time of Sandusky’s crimes) was actually a punishment for Penn State football?
Emmert: “Somebody had to pay for what that monster did. Everybody knew. They all knew.”
Lawyer: “It’s been said that the sanctions including the rather significant fines imposed by the NCAA against Penn State were based on an incomplete report and contradictory to our nation’s premise of innocent until proven guilty. The only person to have been convicted in this mess so far is Jerry Sandusky. Why not wait until the facts about who may have known what and when come out in court?
Emmert: “Now you sound like all of those annoying reporters. I’m the president and what I say goes. Na-Nana-Na-NA –na.”
Lawyer: “Mr. Emmert, people have pointed to the by-laws of the NCAA which seem to delineate the disciplinary process when universities have violations that involve the athletic departments. Conversely, other universities have had significant legal issues, most recently Florida State, and yet the NCAA didn’t get involved. Sexual assaults. Domestic violence. Theft. Crimes committed by athletes currently on a team and yet the NCAA did not impose sanctions. What do you say about that?”
Emmert “Administrative prerogative.”
Lawyer: “Finally, Mr. Emmert, the NCAA recently implemented new standards for how university athletic departments must handle the reporting of crimes or alleged crimes committed by a member of the athletic community. People argue that coach Paterno, in fact, may have been a role model in developing that process; he heard about an alleged crime and even though he wasn’t a direct witness, reported it to his superiors and never told anyone not to talk about it. What do you say about that?”
Emmert: “I am the Great and Powerful Oz. Ignore the man behind the curtain … “
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