You know I like to think of myself as a mix between a sports purist and a contemporary. By combining these two, let me explain what I mean: I believe that college sports is the best and purist form of sport. See to bench a kid in college means something. They have to sit and stew, but also learn that the game they play is not all about them. But also, I am contemporary enough to know that sometimes your punishment has to be creative to fit into today’s culture. In the pro game if you bench a player you don’t know if they’re going to respond to the coach or call their agent and work a deal to change teams.

So with that back drop let me say that reading the story about the NCAA doing a mia-culpa and basically reversed all the sanctions levied against the Penn State program for their gross negligence in the Jerry Sandusky sexual assault case. I have to say that I’m a bit pissed off that the governing body did not have the spine to stand tall in the face of their penalties imposed. I hate everything about this agreement.

Lawmakers and lawyers filing suit because they think their valued institution was over punished for a heinous crime allowed to proceed unchecked on their campus, under their legendary coach, in their football facilities, with no concern for the young boys who were molested. To say that there is anything fair about this ruling is insane.

And yes I understand the argument that some make that the innocent football players shouldn’t be penalized for their head coach and assist coaches misconduct. But, exactly what is Lack of Institutional Control, but the university not providing the correct oversight to their athletics programs. SMU was given the death penalty for infractions committed by their coaches towards players. Other institutions have been placed on probation and had victories and titles stripped because of benefits provided to players by folks associated with the program.

Mind you while these things are a violation of the NCAA rules, they are not criminal in nature alone. Jerry Sandusky was breaking the law for years, hell decades without so much as a investigation by the university and you mean to tell me any one with half a damn brain can say that the NCAA over-reached in their punishments. For all I care, you could have given them the death penalty and I would have been satisfied.

It’s time to stop propping these college programs up as “Too big to fail”, and let them learn the hard way that control and oversight are essential elements of institutional control, no matter how big your sports programs are, or how legendary of a coach you have on your sidelines. Hey NCAA, you screwed the fuckin’ pooch this time and I hope you are eradicated very soon. Your oversight has been biased, weak and lacks any real teeth.