Jan 2, 2012; Pasadena, CA, USA; Wisconsin Badgers coach Bret Bielema during the 2012 Rose Bowl game against the Oregon Ducks at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

The NCAA sanctions against Penn State included a provision allowing players to transfer away from the embattled program and play immediately rather than have to wait the usual one year. There’s no question this was the right thing to do on behalf of the players, who were not responsible for what went down at that school and should not have their careers interrupted. But from the other side, it opened up a huge ethical debate. Would teams wish to pursue Penn State players knowing the horrible circumstances behind their release, or would they feel uncomfortable taking advantage of such a sorrowful turn of events to build their program?

Everyone has to answer that for themselves. Bret Bielema for one has already made up his mind. The Wisconsin Badgers will not pursue Penn State defectors.

“I made the decision as a head coach we would not reach out to any Penn State players,” Bielema said. “I think one of the things that I’ve loved and appreciated about being in this conference is there is a genuine respect for everybody in our league that you are a Big Ten brother and … we’re a group of coaches that have a network that’s beyond anybody’s expectations and helping us in recruiting.”

Bielema added, “And it wasn’t anything more than I have a group of 105 players that are reporting on Aug. 5 that I want them to understand and believe that I think they can help us win another championship. And to bring someone in at this point so close to the season, I just wasn’t comfortable with it.”

It appears Bielema wasn’t so much concerned with the larger ethical question of whether it would be right to take advantage of a situation so horrific as what went down at Penn State merely to help win football games. He’s talking about the Big 10 “brotherhood” – Urban Meyer probably snickers at that – and his relationship with his own players. Either way, you won’t see any Penn State transfers popping up in Madison this year. Probably the right call, all things considered.

Oct 11, 2008; Madison, WI, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach Joe Paterno answers questions during the post game press conference after the game against the Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium. Penn State defeated Wisconsin 48-7. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-US PRESSWIRE

Penn State got the bad news from the NCAA on Monday. Severe penalties as punishment for letting Jerry Sandusky get away with molesting children. Among the sanctions: a four-year bowl ban, loss of scholarships and a $60 million fine. And, most painfully for those who lament the damage being wrought to Joe Paterno’s legacy, the vacating of all wins going back to 1998.

The forfeiture of wins wipes 111 of Paterno’s all-time-record 409 victories off the books, dropping him from first all-time to 12th. This next fact is a mere meaningless footnote to this whole sad saga but it’s worth nothing anyway if only for curiosity’s sake: with those 111 wins from 1998 to 2011 off the books, Joe Paterno’s last recognized victory as a head coach now came on November 22, 1997 against the Wisconsin Badgers at Beaver Stadium (h/t Tom Oates). And a further little twist? The winning quarterback for PSU that day was Mike McQueary. The same Mike McQueary who would go on to become a central figure in the scandal.

A meaningless footnote. But still strange and poignant and possibly ironic if you’re into that sort of thing.

June 22, 2012; Bellefonte, PA USA: Jerry Sandusky leaves the Centre County Courthouse in handcuffs after being found guilty in 45 of 48 counts in his child sex abuse trial. Mandatory Credit: Mara Ticcino/The Daily Collegian-US PRESSWIRE

The statue of Joe Paterno has come down, but that’s only the beginning of the upheaval for Penn State university in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky pedophile cover-up scandal. According to CBS things are about to get even more unhappy at Happy Valley. A source has told Armen Keteyian that “unprecedented penalties” are set to be heaped on Penn State and its football program by the NCAA. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Keteyian’s source about the extent of the sanctions, which will be announced during a Monday morning press conference.

What might these penalties entail? They could include the football program receiving the so-called Death Penalty, a one-year ban from competition. Scholarships could be stripped and bowl eligibility could be denied. But the word “unprecedented” implies something harsher even than these punishments. Some would argue there is no punishment too harsh for Penn State after investigator Louis Freeh’s revelations about the Jerry Sandusky cover-up.

Removing the statue may help some people at Penn State sleep easier but it won’t be enough to satisfy those still calling for justice.