Failing as a Man

By now you’ve heard about the sexual molestation controversy that has engulfed Penn State and its football program. A lot of people are calling for the head coach Joe Paterno to resign for his part in the scandal, and in doing so are overlooking perhaps the greater evil.

I read the Grand Jury report on the Jerry Sandusky indictment because I found the news media’s use of euphemisms and the distanced way they were talking about the most egregious Sandusky alleged violation, and what I read in the indictment was far more chilling than what’s been reported.

According to his testimony in front of the Grand Jury Penn State Wide Receiver Coach Mike McQuery was a graduate assistant with the football program in 2002 and walked in on Sandusky anally raping a 10-year-old boy in the football locker room. Again the full truth hasn’t come out yet, but according to the report, McQuery saw Sandusky with the boy pinned up against the wall, both Sandusky and the boy saw McQuery and McQuery walked away.

Rather than stopping the sexual assault then and there McQuery turned and walked away and went back to his office. I can’t imagine being this boy and being violated in such a manor and have adult, a large, former football player in his 20s, walk in and be in a position to stop it only to have him walk away. I would think that would be like being raped by a second person.

McQuery goes back to his office, calls his father. His father -- instead of telling him that he has clear and unflinching moral duty to call the police -- tells him to wait until the morning and talk to the head coach. McQuery follows that advice, is told that information is passed along, but it wasn’t passed along to the police.

I understand that straight guys are intentionally a squeamish lot, and what McQuery saw had to be shocking to him, but he walked away from a rape in progress and didn’t do anything. Yes, Joe Paterno failed in his moral obligation to do more than just kick it up to his supervisor. but McQuery failed as a man. How can you see a child in that much pain and walk away? How does it not haunt you ever night? How does it not drive you to see justice done?

If that wasn’t bad enough McQuery stayed with been state and has moved up the ladder to wide receiver coach and a recruiting coordinator. At best he was being incredibly naive, and worst his position is payoff for his years of silence.

I’m not saying that McQuery was offered a job for not going to the police about Sandusky, but it seems like its s question the media should be asking and they’re not. So far the media coverage of McQuery’s role in the scandal has been mostly positive. USA Today interviewed McQuery’s father who said how hard it’s been for his son. The Pittsburg Post Gazette wrote a story about how awesome and what a “Take Charge” kinda guy McQuery is. Few people are calling on him to resign

At best, McQuery knew Sandusky was a child rapist, knew he had never been to jail, knew he had never spoken to the police which meant there was no police investigation, and decided to stay. At best McQuery is a man who knew what he saw, knew his college swept it under the rug and decided to stay. At worst McQuery is a man who accepted a job given to him for not embarrassing the college. Either way McQuery shouldn’t be allowed around children ever again.

As a former journalist who can’t find work in his chosen profession I understand how painful it is to find a new profession but Mike McQuery saw a boy being raped and he called his Dad. He didn’t act to stop the rape, he didn’t call the police, he didn’t confront Sandusky, didn’t push for an investigation, he called his dad, then he took a job with the school. A coach’s first responsibility is to protect his players, and if Mike McQuery can’t protect a 10-year-old boy during his darkest hour, Mike McQuery doesn’t deserve to ever walk a sideline again.