Correction appended: July 16, 2012.
When the Freeh report was released Thursday, people across the nation voiced their opinions on the report itself, Penn State and Joe Paterno.
Friday, current members of the Nittany Lion football team had their chance to share their thoughts.
"We didn't talk about it at all, but you know, you can't help but not watch any of it or hear any of it," senior tackle Jordan Hill said of the Freeh report. "It's out everywhere, anything socially that we do, it's going to be out. But we just don't talk about it because we got to get focused on this season."
Hill was one of many players who were available for comment at the team's annual "Lift For Life" event, which was held Friday afternoon at the Penn State lacrosse field.
The Freeh report disclosed four of the most powerful men at Penn State -- one of whom was Paterno, the late football coach --failed to do enough to stop the sexual abuse of children by former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.
Senior center Matt Stankiewitch said the news in the Freeh report was not easy to hear.
"Well, it's tough. It's tough because I'm from Pennsylvania, it's tough for anybody, it's tough for college football," said Stankiewitch, a native of Orwigsburg.
Stankiewitch declined to comment on if the report changed his opinion of Paterno, but senior Tight End Garry Gilliam, junior running back Silas Redd, along with Hill, all said their thoughts about their former coach didn't change after Thursday.
"I had a relationship with him through myself, [...] my opinion on him has not changed in any way," Gilliam said.
"They don't know him how we know him," Redd said about Paterno critics. "An opinion is an opinion, everyone is going to have one."
Redd added he thinks the statue of Paterno which stands outside of Beaver Stadium should remain standing because he feels Paterno "did a lot more good than bad" for Penn State. Hill is also hoping the statue is not taken down.
"It would be sad if it went down," Hill said. "I definitely want to take a picture with it when I'm graduating, [when I have] my cap and gown on."
Now that the Freeh report is over, the NCAA is conducting its own inquiry into Penn State and its handling of Sandusky. Though the investigation will be looking at the actions and inactions of former coaches and administrators, it's still something current players have to deal with.
"You hear the death penalty, and you think, like it really can't happen, but you just don't know what's going to happen" Hill said. "But at the same time, we can't think about what if this happens, because nothing has happened yet to us. When that time comes, if it comes, then we'll worry about it, but right now our eyes are focused on this camp coming up."
Bill O'Brien, who was hired to be Penn State's new head coach in January, was not at the event Friday, but did issue a statement Thursday regarding Freeh's report.
"We can and we must do better," O'Brien said in the statement. "Nonetheless, I too remain proud of the accomplishments and character of Penn State's many generations of student-athletes, and I look forward to doing my part to ensure we emerge stronger than before."
An earlier version of this article incorrectly quoted Silas Redd. Redd said Joe Paterno "did a lot more good than bad" for the university. The Daily Collegian apologizes for this error.
