Nike, Inc. will remove the late head coach Joe Paterno’s name from its child care center at its World Headquarters, according to a statement released today by Mark Parker, President and CEO.
“I have been deeply saddened by the news coming out of this investigation at Penn State,” Parker said in the statement. “It is a terrible tragedy that children were unprotected from such abhorrent crimes.”
Earlier today, former FBI director Louis Freeh released a report of his internal investigation of Penn State in relation to how the university handled situations surrounding former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.
Sandusky was convicted of 45 counts of child sex abuse on June 22.
In the report, it was revealed that Paterno, along with other former administrators, was made aware of a 1998 investigation by Penn State University Police into Sandusky. Then, he was made aware of an incident in 2001 involving Sandusky and a different boy in acting inappropriately in a Lasch Building shower, according to the report.
Paterno did not alert authorities, according to the report, however he did report the incident to former athletic director Tim Curley and former Interim Senior Vice President for Finance and Business Gary Schultz.
After Paterno died in January after a battle with lung cancer, Nike’s board Chairman and co-found Phil Knight blasted the Board of Trustees, standing up for Paterno and saying he was wrongfully terminated at a memorial for the late coach.
“If there is a villain in this tragedy, it lies in that investigation, and not in Joe Paterno," Knight said at Paterno's memorial service -- a statement that generated applause and a standing ovation.
Today, he released a new statement with regard to the release of the Freeh report.
“According to the investigation, it appears Joe made missteps that led to heartbreaking consequences. I missed that Joe missed it, and I am extremely saddened on this day,” Knight said in the statement. “My love for Joe and his family remains.”
