A death penalty by any other name…

It’ll take a long while – if ever – for Penn State to recover from this:

Penn State penalties: $60 million fine, 4-year postseason ban, vacating all records from 1998-2011, loss of 20 scholarships each year.

— Jon Solomon (@JonSolomonCBS) July 23, 2012

The fine goes to programs that help abuse victims.

And that’s not all.

Penn State players can transfer and play immediately at a new school.

— Jon Solomon (@JonSolomonCBS) July 23, 2012

So Bill O’Brien has to recruit his own roster again.  Good luck with that.

And JoePa’s legacy takes another hit.

Mark Richt's mentor, Bobby Bowden, is now the NCAA's all-time winningest Division I coach, thanks to Paterno's '98-01 wins being vacated.

— Seth Emerson (@SethEmerson) July 23, 2012

All told, it’s brutal.  And unprecedented.  But we shouldn’t worry, because the NCAA’s heart is in the right place.

Ed Ray the chair of the ex committee calls "historically unprecedented" because of "reckless and callous disregard for the children."

— Pete Thamel (@SIPeteThamel) July 23, 2012

When making a power grab, it’s always useful to invoke the children.

There’s no telling where the NCAA goes from here.  But I think Mr. Hall captures my sense of cynicism quite nicely.

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UPDATE:  One additional element to consider:

Had Penn State not wanted to play ball, Emmert was not authorized to unilaterally impose punishments.

— John Infante (@John_Infante) July 23, 2012

If that’s the case, what would the NCAA have done if Penn State hadn’t cooperated?

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UPDATE #2:  Hey, but they saved the important stuff!

Delany: "We thought all things taken together was sufficient. We thought television… and other membership things should not be impacted."

— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) July 23, 2012

Yeah, can’t have innocent people who had nothing to do with what happened being hurt.  Unless they’re the current Penn State coaches or players, that is…

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It’s a good thing they were losing.

Part of the mythology surrounding Herschel Walker’s Georgia career has been that Vince Dooley wasn’t sold on his ability during his fall practice as a freshman.  We’ve been assured that’s why he wasn’t inserted into the starting lineup for the opener at Tennessee.

Except that’s not really the case at all.

… Down 15-0 in Knoxville at the half, Dooley’s bring-Herschel-along-slowly plan was out the window. Georgia and Dooley needed to win – fans are an unsympathetic bunch when you are coming off a 5-6 season.

“That’s when (offensive coordinator) George Haffner told me to tell Coach Dooley that we were going to play Herschel,” Cavan said. “I am just thankful we were down 15-0, because Coach Dooley at that time said: ‘I don’t care… do what you have to do.’”

Dooley’s plan was abruptly out of the way, but Cavan had been trying to convince Dooley of Walker’s importance weeks before the trip to Knoxville.

“I remember sitting in the staff room two weeks before the game saying: ‘I really think we are going to have to play Herschel.’

Dooley knew Walker’s talents were hard to deny, according to Cavan, but he wasn’t ready to put Walker in the starting spotlight just yet.

“I remember that Coach Dooley said: ‘I agree, but we are not going to start him. We are going to see how the game goes,’” Cavan recalled.

So much for that “I’m afraid Herschel is just a big, stiff back” stuff.

Monday morning buffet

Let’s get your week started.

• It’s amazing to me how many big time records Herschel Walker still holds, despite only playing three years of college ball.
• There haven’t been two SEC quarterbacks taken in the first round of the NFL draft since 1952.
• If you care about such things, here’s some speculation about what the SEC might look like in ten years.
• Steve Spurrier being a smart ass is the genesis of a rivalry?  I do not think that word means what you think it means.
• Aaron Murray is saying the right thing, at least:  “I’m constantly working on my footwork; you can never be too perfect. You always want a good base to throw accurate passes and the more drills you can do, the better, so footwork is definitely the most important thing I’m working on…”
• Over the last three seasons, Georgia hasn’t been as unlucky with injuries as you might think.
• Here’s another piece ranking the SEC coaches.
• And this is a good a description of SEC Media Days as you’ll see:  “there are tons of media around but nothing really happens.”
• “No one,” Jones said smiling, “wants to be the first team that Missouri beats while in the SEC.”

(The quick return of) Name That Caption: he’s watching you, girl.

Sorry, but this photo is too good not to pass along.  Obviously taken just a few moments after this shot of Ms. Intensity, check out the look Nick Saban is giving after signing her hat:

Linda Stelter/The Birmingham News, via Associated Press

If “I don’t have time for this shit” has a look, that’s it.