With Penn State wins restored, Joe Paterno the winningest coach again

Joe Paterno, once again, will be the winningest coach in major college football history, but the debate over who won this legal showdown goes on.

NCAA President Mark Emmert and Pennsylvania State Sen. Jake Corman, the lead plaintiff in the case, offered dueling interpretations at separate news conferences Friday, both announcing a settlement in a lawsuit stemming from the Jerry Sandusky child sex-abuse scandal at Penn State University. Pennsylvania officials brought the suit against the NCAA and Penn State, challenging the validity of the consent decree they signed in 2012 that assigned unprecedented punishment to the school for its failure to act on information years earlier regarding Sandusky.

That consent decree is no more.

The settlement restores 112 victories to Penn State, 111 of those to Paterno, the legendary coach who died three years ago this month. And it directs $60 million — a penalty the school agreed to pay in the consent decree — to programs serving victims of child sexual abuse in Pennsylvania.

"To me that was always the core of the consent decree," said University of South Carolina president Harris Pastides. He said that while others will focus on restored football victories, he felt continuing the litigation would only further delay distribution of the funds.

The NCAA said its board of governors approved the settlement Friday and other parties to the case are expected to approve it as well, averting a trial scheduled for next month. The NCAA said that Penn State initiated the latest settlement discussions about a month ago.

Corman, the Republican state senate majority leader who filed the suit with state treasurer Rob McCord, held a news conference that appeared to double as a victory lap.

"My kids used to play midget football. This is akin to the mercy rule," Corman said. The NCAA was "way behind in the case and they didn't wish to continue it. And so they gave in and repealed the consent decree." Corman called that a surrender by the NCAA and a victory for due process.

Emmert's response focused on the agreement. "Well, he's certainly allowed his opinions, like any individual is, and that's fine for him to state those things," Emmert said. "I would encourage you to look at the settlement agreement itself and you'll see it's quite contrary to that."

Emmert spoke at a news conference where he was flanked by Kansas State president Kirk Schulz, a member of the NCAA board of governors, and South Carolina's Pastides, a member of the Division I board of directors.

The NCAA said the settlement agreement reaffirmed its authority to act. "You can read the agreement," Emmert said. "Penn State University unanimously agreed with that statement."

Corman disputed it. Asked if the NCAA acknowledged privately that it had overstepped its authority in the consent decree, Corman said: "They're not going to say that. Their actions say that. If you felt this was a provable case, you don't come to agreement."

Schulz said the consent decree, which came less than two weeks after the Freeh Report that found serious fault with Penn State in the Sandusky scandal, was a highly unusual action for the NCAA, and one he hopes is not repeated.

"As the board of governors, we don't have any desire to go in and have to do these sort of actions with any of our colleague institutions ever again," he said. "This was a truly extraordinary circumstance and the board felt that they had to quickly and decisively put forward a set of sanctions. … I hope it is a once-in-a-hundred-year type of occurrence and that we'll be able to use the regular compliance activities" in future cases.

As part of the settlement, Penn State and the NCAA will enter into a new Athletics Integrity Agreement (with concurrence of the Big Ten Conference) to include best practices with which the school is committed to comply. Penn State is also to continue to retain the services of former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell and his firm to support it in areas of compliance, ethics and integrity.

"The (NCAA) board's authority to act in this process was sound, and we believe it was appropriate, and as the agreement points out, was conducted by both parties with good intent," Emmert said. "It's had, I think, a very positive impact on the university. We've seen the university adopt all of the requirements of the Athletic Integrity Agreement and receive a very positive response from Sen. George Mitchell."

Corman's lawsuit began in January 2013 as a challenge to the NCAA taking the $60 million fine to be spent nationally. In February of that year the state legislature passed the Endowment Act, which required the money to be kept in the Pennsylvania. The NCAA had previously tried to settle the case in October, offering to comply with the Endowment Act and keep the $60 million in Pennsylvania.

The NCAA issued unprecedented sanctions against Penn State in 2012, including a loss of scholarships and a four-year bowl ban, as punishment for the school's failures regarding Sandusky, who was convicted of serial child sex abuse – including on Penn State's campus – that went on for more than a decade. The sanctions were outlined in a consent decree, which state officials alleged the school's president felt compelled to sign after NCAA President Mark Emmert led him to believe the NCAA might otherwise temporarily shut down the school's football program.

The NCAA Executive Committee restored postseason access – Penn State played in the Pinstripe Bowl – as well as the school's full complement of scholarships, based on the recommendation of Mitchell in response to the university's progress report.

"I am pleased to learn that financial resources to help child sexual abuse survivors will soon become available," Mitchell said in a statement. "I remain impressed with Penn State's progress to date."

Sandusky, 70, was an assistant coach at Penn State for 30 years, all under Paterno. Though he retired in 1999, Sandusky kept an office on Penn State's campus for a charity he ran, the Second Mile, which he used to gain contact with boys he victimized. He was convicted in 2012 on 45 counts of sexual abuse and sentenced to 30 to 60 years in prison.

Paterno's previously pristine reputation was damaged in the scandal and Penn State removed his statue from its perch outside the football stadium. Now his victory total will again stand at 409, putting him ahead of former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden, who has 377 career wins.

Corman was asked if Paterno's statue should go back up.

"My own personal opinion? Yes," Corman said. "But that's a matter for the Board of Trustees."

Asked about the significance of Paterno's wins being restored, Emmert said: "I'll let individuals draw whatever conclusions they want from these actions."

Will anything be done to recognize restoration of Paterno's record?

"That's entirely up to the university," Emmert said, "and not up to the NCAA."