Penn State Scandal: Should Bowl Games Embrace or Rebuff the Nittany Lions?

The Penn State scandal has sucked the fun out of a great season. The football team is playing at a high level, as they are one game away from playing in the Big Ten conference championship game. 

Win-or-lose, Penn State will finish their season at a very impressive 9-3 or 10-2 record. The end of their season will have this team eligible to play in a bowl game. It could be just your run-of-the-mill bowl game on January 2nd this year. Or, if they beat Wisconsin and win in the first ever Big Ten football championship game, they could play in this year’s Rose Bowl game. 

However, after everything that came out with the Jerry Sandusky scandal, does this program deserve to have the privilege to play in a bowl game this year? 

For some of you, the feelings that come from the allegations from the grand jury report would make you say they do not deserve postseason play. 

What was in the report was accusations of horrible, disgusting and vile things. If the former defensive coordinator is found guilty of what was in that report, then he has a chance at spending the rest of his life in prison. 

However, the NCAA has only sent Penn State a letter, announcing that they will begin an inquiry into looking at how the university handled the situation. 

Because these alleged actions happened well before this 2011 Penn State team was put together, should they not suffer for what happened in the past? Why should this team have to be punished for someone that they never were coached by in Sandusky? 

After all, Sandusky is the one who was charged with all of these crimes. The current roster didn’t do anything wrong. Furthermore, the coaches who were named in the report, head coach Joe Paterno and wide receivers coach Mike McQueary, were not criminally charged after the grand jury report came out. 

Why would these kids have to suffer after putting together such a great season? Why would all of their blood, sweat and tears have to go to waste because of someone that used to coach on the team? 

If you believe that the current crop of kids did nothing wrong, then you believe that they should not receive any push back from the post season bowl games.

So what do you think? 

Should the bowl games turn away from the Nittany Lions? Or should Penn State be rewarded for their great 2011 season? 

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