Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/83706
can't be reprinted in these pages, so crude that they had Bill O'Brien fum- ing days later. Said the coach, "To go on spacebook or tweeter or whatever and put stuff on there is just ab- solutely ridiculous to me, and very cowardly, to be honest with you." Well said. But as sad as the fallout was following the Nittany Lions' loss in Charlottesville, it was not totally unexpected. Every college football community has its lunatic fringe. Penn State, by virtue of its large fan base and perennially high expecta- tions, probably has more malcontents than most. Thanks to the ubiquity and anonymity of the Internet, they now have a platform. But the ravings that followed the Nittany Lions' visit to Virginia seemed especially harsh, and not just be- cause they were aimed at a specific player. They also resonated in the broader university community be- cause they contradicted the "One Team" mantra that Penn State has been promoting as it looks to move on from its devastating off-season. No matter what the banners and advertisements may say, this is a community at war with itself in ways large and small. People will forget about the Virginia game soon enough, if they haven't already. But the larger issues concerning the university's re- sponse to the Sandusky scandal and the Freeh report, as well as its gover- nance – particularly the size and the composition of its board of trustees – are going to weigh on Penn Staters for a long time to come. That point was driven home by the recent Rally for Resignations, in which about 1,000 people gathered on Old Main lawn to call for the ouster of pretty much everyone on the payroll. Insurgent trustee Antho- ny Lubrano was on hand, an appear- ance that couldn't have sat well with his new colleagues. Franco Harris was there, too, one day after he had his microphone cut off during the public comment portion the trustees' September meeting because he hadn't registered to speak. Joe Paterno was there in cardboard form, as someone placed a Stand-Up Joe on the steps in front of the lawn. Fortunately, it didn't rain. Penn State's leaders are trying to move forward, but that's going to be difficult when so many alums haven't come to terms with the past. Those alums see the board's focus on the future as a diversionary tactic aimed at distancing Penn State's leadership from its decision to oust Paterno and its quick acquiescence in the face of heavy criticism this past summer. They assert that the board basically scrolled to the bot- tom of the Freeh report and clicked the "accept" box as if it were a new version of iTunes. Emboldened by Penn State's han- dling of the report, the NCAA dropped its hammer. The university's repre- sentative, Gene Marsh, said Penn State had little choice but to accept the penalties. "This was the NCAA equivalent of a cram-down," he told ESPN. But there's been some genuine disagreement about whether the death penalty was really an option, and that has led to a widespread be- lief among fans and alums that Penn State didn't do all it could to fight the NCAA. That belief could undermine confidence in the board for years to come. These are tough times for Penn State, but if the NCAA's recent ac- tions have taught us anything, it's that we shouldn't defame an entire community because of the actions of a few people. With that in mind, I'm going to assume that the university's true spirit was in evidence when fans gave Ficken a big round of applause during warm-ups prior to the Navy game. And when some students in South Halls sent him a plate of cook- ies with a note that said, "Just want- ed to let you know that we'll be cheering for you Saturday, and want- ed to wish you luck. We are ONE TEAM." Penn State could use a few more of these group-hug moments and less of the divisiveness of the past year. It can't afford to see its enrollment dip because parents don't want to send their kids to a university in disarray. It can't afford to mess up its upcom- ing presidential search, which may be the school's most consequential deci- sion in a generation. It can't afford anymore riots and scandals and all- day binge-drinking bacchanals and embarrassments like the online fall- out from the Virginia game. Yeah, Sam Ficken had a bad day against the Cavaliers. But he wasn't the one who put his worst foot for- ward. www.AmericanAleHouse.net 821 Cricklewood Drive, Toftrees State College 814.238.1406 • www.the-phyrst.com 111 E. Beaver Avenue • State College, PA