PAGE 8B
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2013
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
CRIME
Penn State decides to pay victims of Jerry Sandusky
ASSOCIATED PRESS
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Penn State said Monday it is paying $59.7 million to 26 young men over claims of child sexual abuse at the hands of former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, a man once revered as a university icon who is now serving what is effectively a life prison sentence.
prior sentence.
Nearly two years after the retired coach was first charged with child molestation, the school said 23 deals were fully signed and three were agreements in principle. It did not disclose the names of the recipients.
The school faces six other claims, and the university says it believes some of those do not have merit while others may produce settlements.
University president Rodney Erickson issued a statement calling the announcement a step forward for victims and the school.
"We cannot undo what has been done, but we can and must do everything possible to learn from this and ensure it never happens again at Penn State," said Erickson, who announced the day Sandusky was convicted in June 2012 that Penn State was determined to compensate his victims.
competition has.
The settlements have been unfolding since mid-August, when attorneys for the accusers began to disclose them. Penn State has not been confirming them, waiting instead to announce deals at once.
Harrisburg lawyer Ben Andreozzi, who helped negotiate several of the settlements, said his clients were satisfied.
"They felt that the university treated them fairly with the economic and noneconomic terms of the settlement," said Andreozzi, who also represents some others who have come forward recently. Those new claims have not been presented to the university, he said.
One client represented by St. Paul, Minn., attorney Jeff Anderson signed off on an agreement in the past week and the other is basically done, he said. Anderson counts his two clients as among the three that have been classified as agreements in principle, which Penn State said means final documentation is expected to be completed in the next few weeks.
Anderson said his clients were focused on Penn State's changes to prevent future abuse.
"I have to applaud them, because they said 'not until we're satisfied that no one else will get hurt.' Anderson said. "The settlement of their cases in no way heals, in no way lessens the wound that remains open and the scars that are deep."
Penn State has spent more than $50 million on other costs related to the Sandusky scandal, including lawyers' fees, public relations expenses, and adoption of new policies and procedures related
Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky arrives at the Centre County Courthouse for a post-sentencing hearing in Bellefonte, Pa. Penn State said Monday that it is paying $59.7 million to 26 young men.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
to children and sexual abuse complaints.
It said Monday that liability insurance is expected to cover the payments and legal defense, and
expenses not covered should be paid from interest paid on loans by Penn State to its self-supporting units.
Clifford Rieders, a Williamsport
attorney who negotiated one of the settlements, said the average payout matched other cases involving child abuse in educational or religious settings.
Big 12 champion still unclear as teams fight for BCS berth
ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Big 12 is shaping up for a wild November with five teams fighting for a shot at the league's automatic BCS berth.
Midway through the conference season, the maneuvering isn't just going on at the top of the standings
While four teams already are bowl eligible, others are scrapping to fill the remainder of the league's seven-bowl allotment.
Alongside fifth-ranked Baylor,
No. 13 Oklahoma, No. 15 Texas
Tech and No. 18 Oklahoma State,
it's unranked Texas (5-2, 4-0) that
can take sole possession of first
place over the idle Bears with a win at home Saturday against Kansas.
Talk about a turnaround in confidence from a month ago, when the Longhorns were 1-2 after back-to-back blowout losses to BYU and Mississippi. They've won four straight since.
sight since.
"It's just a change completely," Texas coach Mack Brown said Monday. "The team now feels like they do have a chance to win the Big 12 championship, which is what their goal has been since January.
They do understand they've got to continue to improve. We still had some issues Saturday night that
we can fix. But it's much easier to fix things when you win."
The Longhorns, coming off a 30-7 win at TCU, play three of their next four games at home before the regular-season finale at Baylor (7-0, 4-0).
the Bears and Oklahoma (7-1, 4-1) have a bye week to prepare for their Nov. 7 showdown in Waco, Texas. The break will give Sooners coach Bob Stoops some coveted extra time to figure out how to slow down Baylor and quarterback Bruce Petty.
"Great arm. Great poise. Throws a great ball," Stoops said. "You can tell he has a great understanding of
their offense and where he wants to go with everything. He does a great job."
The Sooners ended Texas Tech's perfect season with a 38-30 win on Saturday. Now the Red Raiders (7-1, 4-1) have to regroup to play Oklahoma State (6-1, 3-1) at home on Saturday.
The loser will fall two games behind in the loss column in the conference race.
revenue they get.
"If you drop one from here on out, you've got to get some help to win" a championship, said Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy.
Texas Tech gave up a season high for points to Oklahoma and
Kliff Kingsbury said he expects his players to be highly motivated this week against the Cowboys, who've beaten the Red Raiders the last two seasons by a combined score of 125-27.
"This is a group that will have a short-term memory," Kingsbury said.
If Texas joins the others in becoming bowl eligible this week, that would leave a group that includes Kansas State, TCU and West Virginia fighting for the conference's final two bowl berths.
1 CU and West Virginia go head-to-head Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas.
"You turn them into one-game seasons," said TCU coach Gary Patterson. "You've got four left. You've got to win three. If you don't do that, then you go home for Christmas."
West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen said he takes "full responsibility" for the lackluster play of his young offense. The Mountaineers (3-5, 1-4) have lost three straight and are trying to continue a streak of bowl berths in 11 straight seasons, while Patterson's Horned Frogs (3-5, 1-4) have gone to a bowl in eight straight years.
BECAUSE THIS ISN'T WHAT YOU HAD IN MIND WHEN YOU SAID...
"THINGS WERE HEATING UP."
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