Radio Smart Talk: Top Stories of 2012 -- Penn State

Radio Smart Talk for Wednesay, December 26:

Penn State’s national championships in football in 1982 and 1986 qualify as two of the most memorable years in the school’s history.  But so does 2012 and it wasn’t because of success on the playing field – even though new head coach Bill O’Brien did bring that.

As part of witf’s Top Stories of 2012 series, Radio Smart Talk looks back at an unprecedented year for Penn State and maybe any college or university.

Fallout from allegations that former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky had sexually molested, abused, and assaulted several young boys (Sandusky was convicted in June) left the university reeling.

In January, legendary football coach Joe Paterno died from lung cancer at the age of 85.  We’ll tell that story later this week.

In July, former FBI director Louis Freeh released details of his internal investigation and concluded Paterno, university president Graham Spanier, athletic director Tim Curley, and vice president Gary Schultz covered up Sandusky’s crimes to avoid bad publicity.

Two weeks later, the NCAA leveled their harshest sanctions ever against Penn State.

You can hear the whole story on today’s program. Listen to it now: