Jerry Sandusky Sex Scandal: Why Penn State Will Lose out for Rest of Season

The Jerry Sandusky scandal has rocked the foundation of Penn State University down to its very core. There are questions about what will happen to head coach Joe Paterno and others associated with the football program, but what does this whole situation do to the players currently on the team?

I know that there are more important factors in-play here than football. Tim Curley, the school's athletic director, and Gary Schultz, vice president for finance and business, have stepped down from their posts as a result of this whole mess.

But it is a fair and relevant question to ask, because all the players are going to be asked about it constantly, making it harder to focus on what happens on the field. 

In case you haven't noticed, the Nittany Lions are the best team in the Big Ten right now. They have an 8-1 overall record, including 5-0 in conference play. Two more wins, and they will play for the conference title on December 3. 

The problem is that none of the players are going to be able to focus on the task at hand with so much controversy swirling around them, even though they have nothing to do with it. 

Head coach Joe Paterno and all of his assistants are not going to be able to prepare the team as well as they should because of the constant questioning from the media and analysis on ESPN and every other news organization. 

Some analysts are even calling for Paterno, who has built this entire program from the ground up in his 61 years with the school, to resign because no one is going to be able to fire him.

From Tyler Duffy of The Big Lead:

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Joe Paterno should resign. He should resign because, in the leadership vacuum that is Penn State University, he’s the only person with the gravitas to fire himself. Facing the most important trial of his professional career, the man supposed to embody courage, dignity and nobility showed weakness. His irresponsibility may have led to the harm of innocent children. His failure, for someone who places himself in a position of authority, is inexcusable.

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We have seen teams in the past face adversity and come through it, like Ohio State and Auburn last season. But this is something entirely different. Those incidents were strictly about football and NCAA violations. The Sandusky scandal is something much bigger than any of that. It is bigger than the Miami scandal that rocked the sport earlier this year. 

When you are dealing with young adults between the age of 18-22, anything that can mess with their mental state is going to ruin the way that they play on the field. The Nittany Lions will suffer on the field over the next three weeks, and their Big Ten Championship dreams are going to go up in smoke.