First Penn State saw its bowl ban rescinded ahead of schedule. Now the same can be said of its conference bowl revenue as well.
In a press release Thursday morning, Penn State announced that the Big Ten’s Council of Presidents/Chancellors has decided to restore the school’s share of the conference bowl revenues for the upcoming football season (2015-16). In connection to the historic NCAA sanctions levied on the football program in connection to the Jerry Sandusky scandal, the Big Ten originally announced that PSU would be stripped of its bowl revenue for a period of four years beginning in 2012-13 and ending in 2015-16.
The move cost the athletic department at least $5 million for the 2014-15 bowl cycle -- and likely substantially more given Ohio State’s run to the College Football Playoff title. The previous two years, the department lost in the neighborhood of $5 million combined.
Additionally, the $2.6 million the school received in bowl revenue for the 2011-12 bowl cycle -- the Sandusky scandal broke in November of 2011 -- was donated by the university to child-abuse organizations. All of PSU’s revenue collected by the Big Ten, incidentally, were divided equally among the conference membership, and was then distributed to similar child-abuse organizations by the individual schools.
“We are grateful to the Big Ten and the Council of Presidents and Chancellors for their decision to restore Penn State’s share of the Conference bowl revenues to the University in the upcoming football season,” said Penn State President Eric Barron in a statement. “These funds will help to support our 31 teams and more than 850 student-athletes.
“While we are pleased with the decision, we will not waver in our commitment to prevent child abuse, to maintain our leading compliance and safety programs, and to continue to invest in our teaching and research efforts focused on child abuse prevention and treatment.”
The Big Ten’s decision comes a month or so after it was announced that 11 wins had been restored to Joe Paterno‘s career mark, wins that had been stripped as part of the Sandusky sanctions. The NCAA had previously restored scholarships to the football program and reduces the program’s bowl ban that had been a part of the original sanctions.
