Sandusky Scandal

Penn State football coach Bill O'Brien says he's fighting to keep his team together after the unprecedented NCAA sanctions ... and claims some universities are playing dirty to get his players.

O'Brien, who has the unenviable task of cleaning up Joe Paterno's mess, was on "Mike and Mike in the Morning" to react to the NCAA rulings -- $60 million fine, vacating 111 wins, 4-year bowl ban, and loss of scholarships.

O'Brien said the hardest part of the punishment is "the fact the NCAA said these guys [Penn State football players] can transfer without penalty." O'Brien added ... he's met with the team and believes most of his players are staying at PSU.

As for the players who are leaving for other schools -- O'Brien said, "I respect the coaching profession, but a lot of coaches ... they have recruited our players without the courtesy of calling me."

O'Brien was not specific about which teams skirted him to get to his players. PSU's star running back Silas Redd is reportedly considering a jump to USC.

O'Brien said he plans to attract future recruits by "talking to them about the degree from PSU. They have to understand to have a PSU degree in their back pocket is a big deal."

USC head football coach Lane Kiffin knows what it's like to run a program that's been hit with major NCAA sanctions ... but the leader of Troy tells TMZ ya just can't compare SC to Penn State.

Lane -- along with his star QB Matt Barkley -- was leaving Pac-12 Media Day at the Gibson Amphitheater at Universal CityWalk yesterday when we asked how he felt about the Penn State punishment.

Here's why Lane's opinion matters ... the SC football team was hit with a 2-YEAR postseason ban in 2010 ... after the NCAA uncovered violations surrounding illegal compensation to USC running back Reggie Bush.

SC was also stripped of its 2004 national championship victory, vacated all wins from the 2005 season and lost several scholarships.

The Penn State football program -- which covered up a CHILD RAPE SCANDAL FOR A DECADE -- was only banned from postseason play for 4 YEARS ... plus, a $60 million fine, scholarship reductions ... and of course, the Nittany Lions had to vacate 111 wins.

"The situations are different," Kiffin said ... noting, "It's impossible to compare the penalties in the situations."

11:00 AM PT -- Joe Paterno's family just responded to the NCAA sanctions, claiming they "defame the legacy and contributions of a great coach and educator without any input from our family or those who knew him best."

The family adds, "Punishing past, present and future students of the University because of Sandusky's crimes does not serve justice. This is not a fair or thoughtful action; it is a panicked response to the public's understandable revulsion at what Sandusky did."

6:26 AM PT -- Well, that didn't take long -- a PSU football recruit has ALREADY decommitted to the school.

Ross Douglas -- a cornerback from Ohio -- will no longer attend PSU in the Fall. No word on where he will play.

Penn State University was just hit with a $60 million sanction by the NCAA for its role in covering up the Jerry Sandusky child rape scandal.

And it gets worse -- or better -- depending for whom you're rooting.

NCAA President Mark Emmert just announced ... PSU will be BANNED from bowl games for the next 4 years. The NCAA will also vacate all PSU football wins from 1998 to 2011.

Sports radio host Max Kellerman thinks Penn State did the right thing in taking down the statue of Joe Paterno -- in fact, he thinks they need to go further.

We caught up with Max at LAX today where he said it was "about time" the statue of JoePa came down. Max said he believes Paterno's actions in the Jerry Sandusky child abuse action outweigh all the good that he's done ... and that Penn State shouldn't stop with just the statue.

The statue honoring Penn State football coach Joe Paterno has been removed from in front of Beaver Stadium.

The statue was removed via forklift as 100-150 students watched, chanting, "We are Penn State."

Penn State president Rodney Erickson announced the statue will be stored in a "secured location."

Erickson released a statement saying, "I now believe that, contrary to is original intention, Coach Paterno's statue has become a source of division and an obstacle to hearing in our university and beyond. For that reason, I have decided that it is in the best interest of our university and public safety to remove the statue and store it in a secure location."

The decision came 10 days after a report conducted by former FBI director Louis J. Freeh conclude that Paterno, as well as other top Penn State administrators, had concealed the allegations of child sexual abuse made against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.

A new report by CBS Sports says the NCAA will hand down "unprecedented" penalties against the school on Monday morning.

It's "Extreme Makeover: Disgraced University Edition."

The honchos at Penn State just released a statement saying the university plans to renovate the football shower and locker room area where convicted child rapist Jerry Sandusky raped children.

The move comes roughly 14 YEARS after officials like Joe Paterno and Graham Spanier allegedly first found out about Sandusky's crimes ... but decided to do nothing about it, because they're a bunch of scumbags.

The Penn State Board of Trustees takes "full responsibility" for not stopping Jerry Sandusky from sexually abusing children -- saying it's "deeply ashamed" about its failures ... and indirectly implicates Joe Paterno.

Karen Peetz -- the PSU board of trustees chair -- just spoke at a news conference, claiming the panel "accepts full responsibility for the failures that occurred" in the sex abuse scandal.

The failures were exposed in a recent investigation -- the results of which were released today, showing most senior leaders of PSU "failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade."

Board trustee Kenneth Frazier said, "Our hearts remain heavy and deeply ashamed."

He added, "We are accountable for what's happened here ... People who were in a position to protect children and to confront a predator ... did not put the welfare of children first" -- a thinly-veiled shot at Joe Paterno and other senior PSU officials.

Nike is cutting one of its last remaining ties to Joe Paterno -- removing his name from the child care building on the corporation's campus.

The move comes just hours after independent investigators revealed the late Penn State coach helped cover-up facts about the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal.

Nike President Mark Parker said in a statement, "With the findings released today, I have decided to change the name of our child care center at our World Headquarters."

Nike co-founder Phil Knight added, "It appears Joe made missteps that led to heartbreaking consequences." Knight had previously defended Paterno's handling of the scandal.

Joe Paterno participated in a 13-year conspiracy to hide Jerry Sandusky's sexual crimes against children from authorities ... so says a new report issued by investigators connected to the Sandusky case.

The Freeh Group --an independent investigative task force hired by the Penn State University Board of Trustees -- released its report moments ago ... and according to investigators, Paterno, along with the most senior leaders of PSU, "failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade."

In fact, the Freeh report concludes ... Paterno ... along with PSU president Graham Spanier, athletic director Tim Curley and vice president Gary Schultz "repeatedly concealed critical facts" in order to prevent bad publicity for the school.

According to the report, Paterno knew about allegations concerning Sandusky since at least March of 1998 ... but failed to take any action to prevent Sandusky from having contact with young children.

"They showed no concern about the victim," the report reads.

"At the very least, Mr Paterno could have alerted the entire football staff, in order to prevent Sandusky from bringing another child into the Lasch Building."

The report says Paterno failed to take immediate action after Mike McQueary told him about Sandusky raping a boy in the gym shower in Feb. 2001 because Paterno "did not want to interfere with people's weekend."

The Freeh report classifies PSU's non-action as "catastrophic failures."

Just last month, Sandusky was found guilty of 45 counts of child sexual abuse ... and will most likely spend the rest of his disgusting life rotting away in prison.

Jerry Sandusky was mercilessly taunted for HOURS during his first night in jail back in December -- when his fellow inmates chanted Pink Floyd's famous lyrics ... "Hey teacher, leave those kids alone!"

One of the men in the facility at the time -- a 22-year-old named Josh -- described the events to The Daily, saying they sang the song over and over ... all night.

68-year-old Sandusky spent the night in jail following his second arrest on December 7th, 2011 -- after a grand jury voted to charge the former Penn State football coach with an additional 12 counts of child abuse, bringing his new total to 52.

That's when the above mug shot was taken.

Four counts were eventually dropped, leaving 48 remaining. Last week, Sandusky was found guilty on 45. He's currently awaiting sentencing behind bars.

An attorney for Jerry Sandusky said Saturday his client has been placed under suicide watch for his own safety.

Karl Rominger told CNN that Sandusky is being held in protective custody -- separate from other inmates -- as he awaits sentencing.

He explained, "The judge in this case and the warden in this case decided to take a measure not meant to suggest in any way that he is suicidal, but simply to put the precautions in place first and then evaluate later."

Jerry Sandusky was found guilty tonight of child molestation, and will almost certainly spend the rest of his life in prison.

The former Penn State assistant football coach was found guilty of 45 of the 48 counts involving 10 boys over a 15 year period.

The jury reached the verdict after deliberating a little more than 20 hours. The judge didn't want to wait until Monday so he had the verdict read at 10 PM ET.

68-year-old Sandusky showed little emotion as the verdicts were read.

He was sent immediately to county jail, where he will await formal sentencing, probably in about 3 months.

8 victims took the stand to testify against Sandusky -- often in graphic detail -- describing how the former PSU coach abused them, from inappropriate touching and group showering, to forced oral and anal sex. Other witnesses described accounts pertaining to the remaining two victims.

Sandusky did not take the stand in his own defense.

Sandusky's lawyers insinuated the witnesses were financially motivated -- but the defense fell flat.

Sandusky met many of the children he abused through his Second Mile children's charity ... which Sandusky claimed he founded to help underprivileged boys.

You know you're up the river without a paddle when your own lawyer has no faith in you -- which is exactly the case for former assistant Penn State football coach and accused child rapist Jerry Sandusky.

Jerry's lawyer Joe Amendola just told reporters he'd be "shocked" if the jury acquitted him on all charges -- adding he'll "probably die of a heart attack" if his client beats the rap.

Jerry stands accused of 48 counts of criminal child abuse -- after allegedly abusing 10 boys over a 15-year period while working as the assistant football coach for Penn State.

Jerry's lawyer likened the trial to climbing Mt. Everest -- calling it a "daunting, daunting case."

Jerry Sandusky's adopted son says he was abused by the former Penn State assistant football coach ... and was prepared to testify at his father's sex abuse trial.

33-year-old Matt Sandusky -- one of Jerry's six adopted children -- released a statement through his attorney saying he is a "victim of Jerry Sandusky's abuse."

Matt did not disclose any details regarding the nature and time frame of the abuse.

Matt's lawyers said Matt did meet with investigators recently ... and was willing to testify. It's unclear why Matt was not called to the stand.

Jerry Sandusky told Bob Costas back in November -- "I didn't go around seeking out every young person for sexual needs that I've helped." Yet that damning statement was never aired on NBC, and prosecutors in the molestation case have not played it for the jury.

"NBC Nightly News" aired the statement last night ... As for why NBC didn't air it during the November broadcast, a spokesman told us, "There were a lot of compelling comments in the original interview but we did not have time to include them all."

Jerry Sandusky just arrived at a Pennsylvania courthouse for the start of his sexual abuse trial.

The former Penn State assistant football coach kept it quiet on his way into the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte, PA, where jury selection is scheduled to begin today.

Sandusky faces 52 criminal counts for the alleged abuse of 10 boys over 15 years -- though he denies all the allegations.