Sports

NCAA Hammers Penn State with Sanctions

Photo: NCAA, NCAA.com

Jul 23, 2012 at 8:59 am

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Penn State's football team has been hit hard by the NCAA inthe wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse case.

NCAA president Mark Emmert announced Monday morning that the Nittany Lions will serve five years of probation and a four-year ban on bowl appearances. The college sports governing body also fined the school $60 million dollars and vacated former coach Joe Paterno's wins from 1998-2011.

The ruling comes following wide speculation that sanctions could include the ending of the entire Penn State football program. As late as last week NCAA President Mark Emmert cautioned that he hadn't ruled out the possibility of shutting down the program, saying he had ''never seen anything as egregious'' as the sex abuse scandal.