The NCAA came down hard on the Penn State football program on Monday, hitting them with numerous sanctions stemming from the Jerry Sandusky scandal. The restrictions drew a reaction from USC Trojans athletic director Pat Haden, who issued a statement on Monday.
Penn State was hit with, among other things, a four-year bowl ban, a $60 million ban, and a loss of 90 scholarships over a five-year period. Haden has dealt firsthand with sanctions at USC, as the school has seen a reduction of scholarships and was prohibited from the postseason in each of the last two years.
Haden's statement noted the importance of the loss of scholarships, and noted how USC handled the sanctions.
"We are fortunate to have an outstanding group of coaches and a plan in place to deal with our sanctions. You have to be very judicious in recruiting, you have to be lucky with injuries and you have to guard your roster from players being recruited by other schools," Haden said. "It is an inexact science and you have to do the best you can. Our coaches have handled these challenges extremely well."
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