Watch CBS News

NCAA President, Penn State President Address Possible Punishment

PITTSBURGH (93-7 The FAN) -- Both NCAA president Mark Emmert and Penn State president Rodney Erickson have spoken out regarding potential punishments to be levied against PSU and its football program.

Late Monday night, Emmert spoke out on Monday night in an interview with PBS and said the NCAA isn't ruling out anything when it comes to punishment.

"I've never seen anything as egregious as this in terms of overall conduct and behavior inside of a university. What the appropriate penalties are, if there are determinations of violations, we'll have to decide. I don't want to take anything off the table."

Penn State's Erickson responded to Emmert's words Tuesday in a series of interviews with the media.

Erickson said he is consulting with the President's Council and the board of trustees to discuss what actions should be self-imposed. He made it clear, though, that the death penalty -- a suspension of the football program for at least a year -- is not going to be imposed by the university.

"It would have major consequences, not just for football but for the entire athletic program," Erickson said, according to a report by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Erickson added that he fully expects the NCAA to take some sort of action. You can read about all of Erickson's thoughts by clicking on the link above.

The expected punishment stems from a child-abuse scandal involving former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. Recently a report conducted by former FBI investigator Louis Freeh revealed that several high-ranking officials at Penn State were aware of Sandusky's actions and "failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade."

Former head football coach Joe Paterno was included as one of those top officials.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.