Penn State Leaders Don't Accept Report Alleging Sandusky Cover-Up

Say allegations about behavior amount to "speculation"

A year after a scathing report criticized Penn State University's initial handling of child sexual abuse claims leveled against former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, school leaders said Tuesday that they do not endorse key findings that coach Joe Paterno and three other university officials actively concealed information about Sandusky's behavior.

Keith Masser, chairman of the university's board of trustees, told USA TODAY's Editorial Board that conclusions about the motivations of Paterno, former university President Graham Spanier, former Athletic Director Tim Curley and former Vice President Gary Schultz detailed in a report by former FBI Director Louis Freeh amounted to "speculation."

Although the report was commissioned by the university, Keith Eckel, another university trustee, said he was "surprised that…Freeh came to conclusions as far as responsibility."