With this past weekend’s leaked emails from former Penn State Athletic Director Tim Curley, not only is it clear that the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal is far from going away, but it also solidifies that Joe Paterno’s legacy is not just forever tarnished–it is forever disgraced.

Not only does the Penn State PR nightmare continue for the university and the entire athletic department, but now it could be facing possible NCAA sanctions for a complete and utter lack of institutional control.

Whether or not the NCAA will go after Penn State is yet to be determined, but as ESPN’s Colin Cowherd pointed out on his Monday radio show, the NCAA would seem awfully hypocritical if they don’t.  It was the NCAA, after all, that hammered USC a couple of years ago because former running back and Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush’s parents took money and gifts from the program.

The NCAA made an example of USC because of their lack of control, stripping them of multiple scholarships and they deemed them ineligible to compete in bowl games the last two seasons.

So, if putting up parents of a player in a home closer to campus, so they can be closer to their son is lack of control, all eyes will be on the NCAA in the coming weeks to see their take on top administrators, including the former president, AD and Paterno for allowing a sexual predator to stay on the streets and have access to Penn State facilities (which is where a number of the Sandusky’s victims were assaulted).

The recent emails released to the public show that not only was Paterno and other top school officials aware of Sandusky’s bizarre behavior, but they also were going to turn Sandusky over to Child Welfare Services, based on former grad assistant Mike McQueary’s account of Sandusky molesting a young boy in the Penn State shower room in 2001.

Instead of getting Sandusky off the street and preventing him from hurting more children, the decision was ultimately made by the Penn State brass to brush the incident under the rug to preserve the Joe Paterno…I mean, Penn State brand.

USC never knowingly allowed a sexual predator to roam free among society, and they certainly didn’t give him the keys to their facilities to lure young boys, but that didn’t prevent the NCAA from arrogantly flexing their muscles to show the world what happens when your program doesn’t police itself to their satisfaction.

The NCAA backed themselves into quite a corner, and as more and more information from the Penn State scandal continues to leak, and former officials, including Curley and former president Graham Spanier face possible jail time, the sports world will be watching and waiting to see how the powers that be in the NCAA will react to an actual lack of institutional control.

photo courtesy of abcnews.com

Switching gears for a bit, it is time to take another look at college baseball. As the 2012 season rolls on, the top 25 stays relatively consistent, but teams shuffle around within each week.

Per usual, most of the teams we see in the top 25 are from the South or out west, where warmer weather makes it easier to practice. But I was excited to see Purdue ranked 15^th with a 31-6 record. They went 3-1 last weekend and were previously ranked 16^th.

In the past, Purdue baseball has not found much success. They have only won one Big Ten Championship and have only made it to the Big Ten Tournament once, so this year is already quite the accomplishment for the Boilermakers.

But what does it say about college baseball if a team like Purdue moves even further up in the top 25?

Sure, they may break the tradition of the classic southern/western team being reigning champions (and it may make a lot of their fans angry), but as I said before, who isn’t opposed to a little change in college sports?

The Big Ten is due for some encouragement anyway, so Purdue baseball could be the perfect way to bring them back into the chatter.

The last time a Big Ten team, or a team from anywhere above the Mason-Dixon line, for that matter, won the College World Series was in 1966, when the Ohio State Buckeyes took home the title. But ever since, it has just been the same story, such as when Southern Cal took five straight titles from 1970-1974 – exciting! (Not so much.)

If Purdue can pull through, it will certainly say a lot for them and even the teams up North yearning for just a shot at the playoffs and the College World Series. It will be a surprise for sure, but change is a good thing. Go Boilermakers!

Every year, the SEC is the hot commodity of preseason college football talk. There is always something going on at Florida, an incredibly talented quarterback has been drafted to the NFL, and one of them just won the BCS championship game.

But this year’s talk has taken a new turn, and it is a bit unexpected.

The USC Trojans, accurately described as one of the “hidden gems” of the 2012 preseason, has been chosen as the top team by many an online sports site, and it could perhaps be because of Matt Barkley’s return, and Stanford and Oregon losing a lot of talent to the NFL.

And remember what I said the other day: a new season is a clean slate, and just because they lost to Stanford in triple-overtime on October 29 does not mean they will face the same embarrassment again in 2012.

If Su’A Cravens commits to USC on June 6, who knows what could happen? Cravens, a 6-1, 210-lb. safety, is rumored to be leaning toward the Trojans; going elsewhere would come as a surprise. But he could add some serious agility and knowledge to the game, the defense especially. The Barkley-Cravens duo could potentially be unstoppable.

Isn’t it just a little refreshing, though, that the spring chatter this year is leaning toward a non-SEC team? I would have to think everyone gets tired constantly hearing talk about Alabama and LSU, especially since they were both in the BCS championship game last season – oh what an exciting change of pace (obviously not – it’s like Kentucky winning the men’s basketball title this year.)

Still, I would have to think a lot of people would have high hopes for the Trojans, especially since they may possibly be a machine next year, and maybe they will finally get their shot against an SEC team in the BCS title game.

It is just time for something new.

In SI.com’s recent 2012 Mock Draft by Don Banks, college football fans see a lot of usual suspects.  Even if you’re not college football fan, you’ll notice that eight players he projects played in the BCS Title game that featured a rematch of LSU and Alabama.

You also see the top three Heisman candidates projected in the top 5.  In this edition of CSF, we take a look at Banks’ top 5 projected picks and we go Magic 8-ball on you to determine whether or not these players will make an immediate impact in the NFL.

1.  Indianapolis Colts:  Andrew Luck/QB Stanford: Unless the Colts feel they can win with two quarterbacks hijacking over $50 million in salary cap, at some point before March 8th, Peyton Manning will sign with a different team for the 2012 season.  This opens the door for Luck to see action immediately this fall.

Will he prove his worth in years 1 and 2?

Jeff’s Magic 8 Ball Answer:  Ask again later. I know, I know…not much of an answer, but sometimes, the Magic 8-Ball is vague, and in the case of the Colts, so is their immediate future.  The Colts showed last season that they are in shambles.  They hope to catch lightning in a bottle twice, with their second correct choice of a 1st round QB.  While Luck is a great player, it will take at least two drafts or a shift in philosophy (owner Jim Irsay has never been one to go after star free agents), and Luck will likely run into the same issues that St. Louis Rams QB Sam Bradford is facing–with no weapons around him, it doesn’t matter how talented your quarterback is.

2.  Cleveland Browns:  Robert Griffin III/QB Baylor: In Banks’ mock draft, he sees the the Browns trading up with the Rams, and more importantly, he sees them selecting a bigger, faster, more athletic version of their current QB Colt McCoy.  McCoy has done a serviceable job in his first two years for a really bad team, but unless he takes a huge step forward in year three, expect RG3 to be the starter this fall.

Will he prove his worth in years 1 and 2?

Jeff’s Magic 8-Ball Answer:  Outlook not so good. RG3′s speed and athleticism are unparalleled, but he doesn’t have the size of Cam Newton.  He’s bigger than Michael Vick and is more of a pass-first QB, but let’s be honest–Griffin’s running ability is a big part of his game.  His speed and elusiveness will what puts him on Sportscenter’s top plays, but it could be what puts him out of football.  As with the Colts, the Browns (or any other team that drafts RG3) have more needs than just the quarterback position, and the lack of weapons will lead to a lot of hits on a star QB.

3.  Minnesota Vikings:  Matt Kalil/OT USC: Banks sites the need to bolster the O-line over another speedy wideout.  As with most any offensive tackles taken high in the draft, expect Kalil to find the field immediately, and should the Vikings choose the talented tackle, he certainly has the ability to anchor an offensive line for a long time.

Will he prove his worth in years 1 and 2?

Jeff’s Magic 8-Ball Answer:  Without a doubt. Kalil is a force on the run and pass, and he will prove his worth right away.  In fact, Kalil’s departure from USC was one of the main reasons many experts thought that quarterback Matt Barkley would also leave this year for the NFL.  If Kalil is available, the Vikings don’t want to pass on dominant tackle that should make a few Pro-Bowl appearances by his third year in the league.

4.  St. Louis Rams:  Justin Blackmon/WR Oklahoma State: Assuming Banks is correct and the Rams trade their second pick to Cleveland, Blackmon would be an ideal pick.  Sam Bradford has been without an impact wide receiver since he got in the league two years ago.  Help could be on the way this fall for the tackling dummy, I mean quarterback for the Rams.  Bradford will still be running for his life behind a pourus offensive line, but at least he’ll have a stud to throw the ball to this season.

Will he prove his worth in years 1 and 2?

Jeff’s Magic 8-Ball Answer:  It is decidely so. Blackmon would have been a first rounder in last year’s draft, but he was only a sophomore.  And unlike fellow Okie State first round selection Dez Bryant, Blackmon isn’t a knucklehead and should be able to learn a playbook.  Any doubts as to whether Blackmon was a legit top 5 pick were put to rest in the Fiesta Bowl last month, when Blackmon absolutely went off, hauling in eight catches for 186 yards and three touchdowns.  Expect much of the same in the NFL.

5.  Tampa Bay Bucs:  Trent Richardson/RB Alabama: Banks believes the Bucs could benefit from another bruising back to complement LaGarrette Blount, and Richardson is easily the best running back in this draft.  At 224 lbs., he has the size to run between the tackles, but he also has the balance and speed to go along with it, qualities that allowed him to average over six yards a carry in the SEC, despite being the focal point of every defense he faced.

Will he prove his worth in years 1 and 2?

Jeff’s Magic 8-Ball Answer:  As I see it, yes. The fact that the Bucs already have a big, physical back in Blount means that the addition of Richardson will cut down on carries for each of the running backs, and they will see the same benefit that Alabama saw in Richardson’s first season with the Crimson Tide, when he split carries with Mark Ingram.  If a different team selects Richardson and he is forced to carry the ball 250-300 times, well…I’ll have to re-check the 8-Ball for an updated answer.

Click here to see Don Banks’ 2012 NFL Mock Draft 2.0 for his full first round projections and analysis, and check back later this week for my Magic 8-Ball impact predictions later this week.

Last month, SI.com reported that former St. Joe’s basketball player, Todd O’Brien had missed the first half of his final season of eligibility because his former coach, Phil Martelli and the administration at St. Joseph refused to grant the senior center a release, once he transferred to UAB this past summer.

Of course, the adminstration of St. Joe’s and Coach Martelli have hidden behind the scenes throughout the breaking of this story, declining to comment to any media outlets as to why they see it necessary to prevent O’Brien from finishing his college career.

O’Brien tried to utilize the same NCAA rule that allowed former NC State quarterback Russell Wilson to transfer from NC State to Wisconsin.  Without getting into too much legal jargon, it states that an athlete who has already graduated will not have to give up a year of eligibility if he/she goes to a different institution, provided that a masters program or course of study is offered at the new institution and is not offered at the original school.

That is…assuming that athlete can get a release.  When it became obvious that Martelli was not willing to allow O’Brien to play for UAB, the senior center made an appeal to the NCAA in the fall.

In typical fashion, the NCAA denied the request, citing St. Joe’s stance on the issue.  O’Brien made an appeal, citing his grades, course of study and his internship that he completed, proving to the NCAA that he is, indeed, studying an area not offered at St. Joseph’s.  That appeal was promtly denied.

The NCAA boasts that it is the governing body that is in place to protect the integrity of college student athletes.  Guess what, NCAA…you failed.  Again.

How is it right that a kid, who averaged a meager 1.0 point per game last year at St. Joe’s, can’t play out his college eligibility because of a hard-headed, vindictive former coach?  The NCAA had a perfect opportunity to protect a student athlete.  But instead, they turned their back on him.

Unfortunately, O’Brien’s case is just the latest in a trend that the NCAA has set.  Take a look at some other ridiculous decisions, in which the NCAA dropped the ball (no pun intended) and failed the student athlete.

2011:  Terrelle Pryor, Devier Posey, Dan Herron and others/Ohio State: The and selling of equipment by Ohio State football players to the owner of a tattoo parlor is well-documented and ultimately cost Jim Tressel his job.  Much criticism was given to Tressel and his players, most notably, star quarterback Pryor for the scandal.

The NCAA did their investigation and announced suspensions of four different players, including Pryor, but despite announcing the suspensions before last year’s Sugar Bowl, the NCAA determined that those suspensions would not begin until the following season.

It should be noted that the NCAA collects the majority of their revenue from college football.  The BCS bowls earn a significant chunk of that revenue.  And a Sugar Bowl without Pryor, Posey and star running back, Herron would mean a sharp decline in ratings and advertising dollars.  The NCAA rules with an iron fist….unless it could hurt their revenue.

2010:  AJ Green, WR/Georgia: The NCAA suspended Green four games after he admitted to selling a bowl jersey to a former North Carolina defensive back for $1000.  In the meantime, the NCAA raked in the money generated from the EA Sports NCAA Football game which featured Green’s digital character, wearing that same #8.

2009:  Dez Bryant, WR/Oklahoma State: After failing to fully disclose that he had a meal with former NFL defensive back Deion Sanders, the NCAA suspended the star wideout for the remainder of the season on October 7, 2009.  Bryant had been a Heisman front-runner and later told media outlets that he was scared when the NCAA questioned him about the interaction with Sanders, and out of fear of loss of eligibility, he did, in fact, mislead them.  Critics, however, question a suspension that cost the phenom his entire junior season.

2004:  Mike Williams/WR, USC: After a federal judge ruled in favor of former Ohio State running back, Maurice Clarrett that the NFL could not bar a player from entering the NFL Draft, instead of requiring that an athlete is at least three years removed from high school, Williams(then a sophomore) declared for the draft and hired an agent.

The Court of Appeals overturned that ruling, prompting Williams to seek reinstatement, so he didn’t have to sit out the entire 2004 season.  Williams applied for reinstatement with the NCAA, caught up on his classes to get in good academic standing and followed the plan laid out for him by the USC coaching staff and administration.  –photo courtesy of cbssports.com

Not only did the NCAA deny Williams his eligibility, but they waited to give the news of the rejection until USC was preparing for their flight out to their first game of the 2004 season.