Trustees defend Corbett, Junker says Paterno kicked sand in our faces
4/6/2012
http://www.altoonamirror.com/page/content.detail/id/559635/Trustees-defend-Corbett.html?nav=742
The fallout from the Jerry Sandusky scandal has produced new accusations that Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett was the most instrumental of Penn State's 32-member Board of Trustees in orchestrating the firing of legendary football coach
Joe Paterno.
In an extensive article published earlier this week, ESPN's Outside the Lines, the network's investigative program, reported that Corbett pushed the board toward its controversial decision on Nov. 9, 2011 that fractured the Penn State community.
Corbett and some trustees deny the allegation.
Edward Junker, an emeritus trustee and retired vice chairman of PNC Bank Corp., read the ESPN article for a second time on Thursday and said he was "very disappointed, to say the least."
"There are a lot of misquotes and false conclusions," Junker told the Mirror. "That Corbett orchestrated this whole thing is totally inaccurate. "Corbett was just another participant in the conversations and he participated less than most board members," Junker added. "His presence was never intimidating. I don't think he forced ideas on any trustee."
Alumni-elected board member David Jones, retired assistant managing editor of the New York Times, agreed.
"I had no idea what [Corbett's] views were on [Graham] Spanier or Paterno, except for his brief remark that has been reported [to remember the children]. His views had no influence on my vote," Jones said.
Junker didn't have a vote, and so his dynamic quotes should not have been included for the ESPN story, said vice chairman of the Board of Trustees Keith Masser.
"Emeritus trustees were there for sure and were part of discussions, but they had no vote," Masser said. "They were voicing their opinions."
Junker's quote was his response to Paterno's statement in November that he intended to retire at the end of the season.
"This is a tragedy," Paterno said then. "It is one of the great sorrows of my life. I wish I had done more."
Paterno then said he would step down and that the board had more important things to attend to than worrying about his future.
"He kicked sand in our faces," Junker told ESPN. "After he made that statement, it certainly sealed the deal as far as trustees were concerned."
Junker's comment quote harkened back to the beginning of the ESPN story which described a long power struggle between the board and Paterno, who kept delaying his retirement and wanted to pick his successor, ESPN said.
But asked whether he thought the power struggle influenced the board's decision to oust Paterno, Junker said, "That would be pure speculation."
Masser said the voting members' reasoning for removing Paterno has been made public, most recently, in last month's statement of Paterno's perceived lack of leadership when he was informed of Sandusky's alleged inappropriate behavior in 2002.
Masser also wants to know the six trustees the article quotes Paterno's lawyer Wick Sollers as saying were contacted to listen to Paterno's side of the story but did not respond.
"I wasn't contacted, and I know [former vice chairman] John Surma and [former chairman] Steve Garban weren't contacted," Masser said.
The article said the Paterno family has yet to be paid $4.5 million owed from Paterno's last contract. Masser told the Mirror that Paterno's family will be paid.
"There are no negotiations or discussions," Masser said. "His contract is being honored."
But perhaps Masser's biggest compaint with the ESPN story was Corbett's alleged leadership role in firing Paterno.
Since becoming governor in January of 2011, Corbett is awarded an honorary seat on Penn State's board. Most governors do not routinely attend the board meetings, and Corbett missed the first four since he was elected.
But his staff booked rooms in State College for the fifth meeting, scheduled for Nov. 11, and, according to ESPN, Corbett "lobbied for the ouster" of Paterno and school president Spanier that week in the wake of sexual-assault charges against Sandusky, a longtime PSU assistant coach.
Corbett not only was successful in urging the dismissals, he bragged about it, according to one Penn State fan who spoke with Corbett and considers him a friend.
Bob Capretto, a 65-year-old former Penn State player who admittedly "loves Joe Paterno," told ESPN that he asked Corbett, "Who told the board to fire Joe and fire Spanier?"
"And the governor said, 'I told them to do it,'" Capretto said. "He was proud of it. I told him, 'You don't realize what you have created here. The damage to Penn State is enormous.'"
ESPN quoted several trustees and a senior faculty member off the record as supporting allegations that Corbett drove the firing.
Corbett refused to be interviewed for the article but issued a statement Wednesday night disputing its contents.
"ESPN's report from the grassy knoll merely adds another chapter to the growing list of conspiracy theories surrounding the Sandusky case," Kevin Harley, a spokesman for the governor, said. "It is a disappointment to read something so long, filled with so many errors, that offers so little by way of new or even real fact.
"The fact remains that Jerry Sandusky is charged with serious crimes of sexually abusing children, and that the evidence against him is overwhelming," Harley said.
ESPN also reported about a rift between Corbett and Spanier. Outside the Lines said Corbett did not appreciate Spanier spending time in the PSU president's box during the 2010 football season with Dan Onorato, a Democrat who was running for governor against Corbett.
Spanier told colleagues he was perplexed by Corbett's reaction, saying Onorato had not been his guest, and he had gone out of his way not to play favorites, ESPN reported.
After resigning as attorney general, Corbett was sworn in as governor on Jan. 18, 2011. Two months later, Corbett proposed cutting $182 million of state funding for Penn State, a 52.4 percent cut from the previous year's total.
Though the vote to remove Paterno was unanimous, ESPN reported that longtime trustee Mimi Coppersmith - an emeritus trustee with no vote - cautioned the board, "Coach Paterno is revered in State College."
Surma responded by saying, "We're not going to drink the Kool-Aid," and made the termination announcement an hour later.
Masser said he doesn't think Surma said that. It was the governor who spoke after Coppersmith, he said.
"I'm not denying it, but I didn't hear it," Masser said. "It's hard for me to pin that phrase to him. It's not something I can picture him saying."
But asked whether Corbett being the only one to speak after Coppersmith could be taken as his having significant influence over the board, Masser paused.
"Taken out of context, it does."
Neil Rudel contributed to this report.
