The Paterno family wants their 111 wins back. They have announced their intention to appeal the consent decree that permitted sanctions to be levied against Penn State University. They believe that as the representatives of an “involved individual,” now deceased, they are entitled to appeal.

A sample of their justification for the appeal.

As will become evident in a thorough and impartial review, the NCAA acted hastily and without any regard for due process. Furthermore, the NCAA and Penn State’s Board Chair and President entirely ignored the fact that the Freeh Report, on which these extraordinary penalties are based, is deeply flawed because it is incomplete, rife with unsupported opinions and unquestionably one-sided. The NCAA and Penn State’s leadership, by accepting and adopting the conclusions of the Freeh report, have maligned all of the above without soliciting contrary opinions or challenging a single finding of the Freeh report. Given the extraordinary penalty handed out, prudence and justice require that scrupulous adherence to due process be observed and not completely ignored.

This should be dismissed quickly. It’s a silly premise for intrusion and all the parties with a legitimate interest have agreed to the penalties. This and the continued search for the real conspiracists should be viewed as the last desperate acts of a once powerful family that can’t comprehend being rendered irrelevant.

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