Penn State Scandal: Highlighting Top Front-Page Photos from Around the Country

Now that the NCAA has dropped the proverbial hammer on Penn State, everyone has had 24 hours to process the information and what exactly will happen to this once-proud program. In addition, newspapers were rolling out their best to express all the emotions that everyone was feeling when the punishment was announced. 

There was some thought that the NCAA would just give Penn State the "death penalty" and be done with the whole thing. Instead, president Mark Emmert gave them a fate far worse than that, as the loss of money, scholarships and victories will have long-term ramifications the likes of which we have never seen. 

Debates about how the NCAA handled the situation were quickly squashed when it was explained that this unprecedented situation deserved an unprecedented punishment. 

While there will be plenty of time to talk about that, we wanted to give you an inside look at the best and most newsworthy front-page photos and headlines from around the country in light of the NCAA sanctions against Penn State. 

Pictures are worth 1000 words, but these pages capture the feeling of the moment better than anything mere words can. 

(Note: Due to space limitations, I put the headline used for the article at the top of the slide followed by the picture.)

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"Punished"

The headline for the front page in the Wilkes-Barre Citizen Voice simply says "Punished."

The reaction of the Penn State alumni who gathered around to hear the NCAA announcement perfectly captures the mood surrounding the entire university at that moment. 

You see all the different emotions—shock, awe, sadness, etc.—in this one picture. It is the perfect photo for this moment. 

"What's Left of the Lions?"

With the punishment being handed down, "What's Left of the Lions?" seems an appropriate question to ask. In the simplest terms, at least right now, we can say that there is definitely not much left. 

Penn State will never be the same again.

The days of playing before 108,000 fans every single week, regardless of opponent, is going to go away quickly. The people will turn out in droves right away, but after that it is going to be a struggle to convince fans that this is a football program they need to see. 

"Dismantled"

If there is one word to perfectly describe what the NCAA punishments did to Penn State, it would be dismantled. 

Everything at Penn State felt so rigid and structured before. We knew what to expect from this program for so long, or at least thought we did.

Now, with the foundations being rocked in a way that we have never seen with any other program, Penn State has to figure out how to build itself up from nothing. 

Rebuilding may not be impossible, but it will be very difficult to do. At the very least, Penn State fans and alumni shouldn't expect anything from the Nittany Lions for the next decade.

"A Cautionary Tale"

The NCAA sent a clear message to all of the programs around the country with these sanctions. If you have any kind of violation, you better fess up to it right now, or else you are going to have a lot of problems. 

With the NCAA taking unprecedented action in this case, everyone else has been put on alert. Anything and everything that happens anywhere from here on out is going to be under a microscope the size of the synchrotron. 

"NCAA Slams Penn State?"

It is easy for us to look at these punishments from the outside and think the punishment fits the crime.

But after the fines and sanctions were levied, the overwhelming emotion that took over Penn State fans and alumni showed just how close these people feel to the football program. 

The vile, disgusting actions of one man, and lack of action from administrators, has brought this program down. The current players and coaching staff are the ones who have to pay the price for their sins. 

"Worse Than 'Death'?"

I touched on it in the intro, but the headline for this photo from the Lehigh Valley Morning Call reads "Worse than 'Death'?"

The picture presents a football program that just seems lost, with a stadium that is losing its once-proud fanbase.

I don't think Penn State fans will ever completely go away, but this photo is going to be a reality sooner rather than later. 

"Not 'Too Big to Fail'"

One of the common things that we heard when everyone was talking about Joe Paterno or the university was how tight the community in Happy Valley really was. 

The NCAA sanctions brought about the same emotions for everyone regardless of age, gender, etc. The woman above is Susan DelPonte, who works for the university and is a student advocacy specialist, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 

"Penn Stunned"

Joe Paterno, the face of Penn State football, is no longer around to see what fate has befallen the program. That doesn't change the fact that his role in the Jerry Sandusky cover-up brought this upon the university. 

The Pocono Record used this photo following a loss to Northwestern eight years ago to go with the headline of "Penn Stunned." There are a lot of people putting their hands on their heads, trying to figure out why things were allowed to go so wrong at Penn State for so long. 

"Unprecedented"

There were three photos used by the Williamsport Sun-Gazette to go with their headline of "Unprecedented," including Mark Emmert's announcement and a photo of people reacting to the news. 

To me, the best one that encapsulates the moment is used at the top of the page with the empty space that used to be occupied by the Joe Paterno statue. It is a reminder that his presence, once so large at that university, left a huge void in so many ways. 

"Legacy Shattered"

To close out the photos and headlines used to put the Penn State sanctions in perspective, why not just go with the easiest one. Jerry Sandusky and the cover-up that tore the lives of so many young men and families apart is all that matters. 

Paterno's sterling legacy is forever tarnished, and this photo with the Penn State logo and Jerry Sandusky cracking captures everything so perfectly.

Someday this university may recover, but the future is bleak for the Nittany Lions right now.