The NCAA agreed to restore 112 wins - 111 of which were Paterno's
- to Penn State's record.
"Today is a victory for the Penn State nation," said state Senator
Jake Corman, who represents the area surrounding the school's main
campus. "The NCAA has surrendered."
The governing body of U.S. college sports had voided Penn State's
football victories for 14 seasons as part of a package of sanctions
to punish the school for failing to stop the abuse by Sandusky, an
assistant coach on Paterno's staff.
Reinstating the victories restores Paterno's record as the head
coach with the most wins in big-time U.S. college football history.
The NCAA's board of governors approved the settlement, said NCAA
spokesman Bob Williams, while the Penn State board accepted it
Friday afternoon.
Penn State officials were accused of not taking action after being
alerted that Sandusky was sexually abusing children, sometimes in
the locker room showers.
The scandal led to Paterno, who won two national titles and had been
one of the most revered figures in college football, being fired
along with other top school officials shortly after the scandal
broke in November 2011. He died of lung cancer a little more than
two months later at age 85.
Sandusky, 70, is serving 30 to 60 years in prison after being
convicted of molesting 10 boys.
Corman sued the NCAA with State Treasurer Rob McCord over a $60
million penalty imposed on the university for child abuse
prevention. McCord and Corman wanted the money spent in the state
and Friday's settlement clears the way for this.
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The Corman-McCord lawsuit morphed into a broader challenge over
whether the NCAA had the authority to punish the university.
At a news conference in Harrisburg, Corman said the settlement
repeals the sanctions imposed on the university because of the
scandal.
In addition to the $60 million penalty, Penn State was banned from
post-season games for four years and had the number of scholarships
for players reduced to 15 from 25.
At the time the sanctions were imposed in July 2012, Mark Emmert,
president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, said Penn
State had put "hero worship and winning at all costs" ahead of
integrity, honesty and responsibility.
(Additional reporting by Steve Ginsburg; Editing by Barbara
Goldberg, Bill Trott and Eric Walsh)
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