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@RandalEtheredge – @Einsane @BeyondUSports What is more damaging to a community; Penn State penalties or Marshall tragedy in the 70′s
The most thought-provoking question in Gold Rush history? Randal again steps up in the clutch
and provides philosophic fodder for BeyondUSports! The Penn State and Marshall tragedies are
different by nature, so it’s tough to compare the two and decide which one is more damaging to
a community. The Penn State situation derives from a monster molesting children for at least
over a decade (but probably much longer), and being protected by the most powerful people
at the university. The damage to the victims and eventually the students at Penn State and
citizens of central Pennsylvania is immeasurable. The Marshall tragedy was different because 75
people, including most of the Marshall Football team and coaches, died when their plane crashed
returning from a loss at East Carolina. Both instances ripped a community apart, but if I must pick
one I’m siding with the ghastly crimes at Penn State. I know that planes crash, and that’s always
sad, but I didn’t want to believe that a man like Sandusky could exist or that other men would
protect his perverse interests.
The Marshall plane crash was terrible and destroyed a small community, but Penn State
was horrific and destroyed an enormous community, filling the American conscious with
nightmares of what lurks in their own towns. A community can more easily deal with tragedy they
can understand, Marshall dealt with 75 people killed in an accident, but didn’t have to witness
a trial that featured molested children taking a witness stand. To understand this concept ask
yourself: Would you rather your neighbor have been killed in the Colorado shootings, or would
you rather your neighbor was the Colorado shooter? I don’t want to underrate the pain you may
feel after the death of a neighbor, but it’s a mind-twisting alternative. To know your neighbor as
a quiet med school student and then learn he planned and executed a mass murder at a movie
theater? How could you trust another neighbor? How would you feel knowing that the guy you
made small talk with while getting the mail irrevocably ruined the lives of countless people? I can’t
imagine a full recovery from that. Even apart from the financial implications of the Penn State
sanctions and Sandusky’s actions, the mental aspect of it is more damaging. A community was
rocked in 1970, but raising a child is different today.
@FoSchnizzle – @Einsane (for goldrush) With PSU and OSU suspended from Big Ten Title
game, who is Wisco’s biggest, eligible, competition from their division
Yeah, the Leaders Division (might need a name change) is sparse for 2012. The only eligible
division champions are Wisconsin, Purdue, Illinois, and Indiana. By process of elimination we
already know that it can’t be Indiana, so I imagine Wisconsin’s most dangerous competition will
be whatever team gets off to the hottest start between Purdue and Illinois. The Boilermakers and
Illini will both understand the opportunity in front of them without Ohio State and Penn State in the
race for the Big Ten Championship game, so a little momentum can carry them a long way. With
that said, it’s going to be awfully hard for Purdue to have early season momentum. They have
a September 8th contest at Notre Dame and open up the Big Ten Schedule with its three best
teams, Michigan, Wisconsin, and then at Ohio State. Illinois on the other hand could conceivably
be favored in their first five games before heading to Wisconsin on October 6th, although I’m sure
they would sign up for 4-1 without hesitation. Wisconsin is not going to be as good in 2012 as
they were in 2010 or 2011, but they should still be the class of the Leaders division.
@bdemijan – @Einsane does PSU lose scholarships for all sports or just football?
For now Penn State loses scholarships for football only. As the financial details continue
to leak out it becomes more likely that Penn State is going to have to drop other sports
programs. Nittany Lions fans are rallying together on message boards pledging to continue to
attend all games, but not all 109,000 of them. If they ride out the years to come then they are
without a doubt the greatest fan base on the planet because universally when a team is bad you
can’t fill a stadium larger than most towns, so if they can’t fill the stadium and the donations and
revenue dwindle then the school can’t maintain the athletic budget it created based upon football
as the cash cow. That is one of the saddest points to this entire mess; a girl from the diving team
may lose her opportunity to attend Penn State and compete because the NCAA wanted to appear
in control.
Pete from Hoboken – Will the Red Sox make a push for one of the two wildcards or will the
first half of injuries (and now papi) keep them out of any october fun?
From now on let it be known that Pete from Hoboken was the inaugural commenter to make Gold
Rush, an even more incredible feat considering he is asking about the Red Sox and I’m a Yankee
fan. But we teach tolerance at BeyondUSports and we believe all sports fans are created equal,
where they choose to side after creation is their own problem. Alright Pete, without further ado,
on to the Sox. Boston trails the Yankees by 9.5 games, and even with the Yankee injury woes
that is a large number in late July. Now that we are squarely concentrating on the Wild Card,
having two spots makes all the difference and renders the playoff starved Red Sox buyers in this
year’s trade market. Who is available? That will be sorted out in the next few days but you figure
they wanted to get in on both Hanley Ramirez and Anibal Sanchez from Miami, and those pieces
have been moved. They are currently four games out of the Wild Card, but six teams are between
them and the lead. Just looking at the numbers, Boston has to make a move, and against all odds
they have to get hot. It’s July 25th, and the Red Sox will only play eight remaining games against
teams that have worse than a .500 record. That includes nine games at Yankee Stadium, and six
games against the surging Angels.
Ian Gold
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