NCAA Sanctions For Penn State Being Called "Harsh" - WMDT 47 News - Delmarva's Choice

SALISBURY, Md. - The NCAA slams Penn State University with a staggering series of penalties on Monday, in the wake of accusations that university officials "covered up" child sex abuse allegations to avoid bad publicity.

These unprecedented sanctions have rocked the athletic world. Sherman Wood, the head coach of Salisbury University's Football team, had this reaction: "It is a sad day for everyone. But the bottom line is something had to be done for the sake of the kids. When I heard those sanctions, I wasn't thinking about football. It's something that had to be said. It takes something very serious for everyone to receive a wake up call. It's a wake up call for every university."

The sanctions include a 60 million dollar fine, a 4 year ban on bowl games, the school will lose 20 scholarships, per year, over four years, and they will also lose all wins from 1998 through 2011, which means Joe Paterno is no longer considered the winningest coach in NCAA football history.

The family of Joe Paterno says the NCAA's sanctions "defame his legacy and are a panicked response to the scandal that led to them" and that punishing "past, present and future" students because of former assistant Jerry Sandusky's crimes did not serve justice.

Folks in Salisbury have mixed emotions. "I think it's a very harsh penalty! And there's so many people involved and it's a very tragic tragic thing," explains Pauline Palhamus, who tells WMDT she and her husband have ties to the university. "We have many friends that are Penn State graduates, and we feel badly for them."

John Wright says he understands the harsh penalty, but he admits it's hard to pick a side, "If I had to pick a side I would definitely be leaning towards the victims rights and the victims justice."

Mark Emmert, NCAA President, had this to say Monday morning, "No price the NCAA can levy will repair the gravest damage inflicted by Jerry Sandusky on his victims. However we can make clear that the culture, actions, and inactions that allowed them to be victimized will not be tolerated in collegiate athletics."

Some, like Jared Monteiro understand, "In a way, I think it's serving as a good deterrent to other coaches around the country to not do this kind of stuff."

But some folks in Salisbury are still definitely up in arms. "They worked hard," stresses Sofia Calles, adamantly, "and it's very disappointing to take it away from them."

Jerry Sandusky, a former Penn State defensive coordinator, was found guilty in June of sexually abusing young boys, sometimes on campus.

It's a heated topic, and we want to hear from you. What do you think about the NCAA sanctions on Penn State? Head to our facebook page and sound off.