Penn State trustee appeals sanctions

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STATE COLLEGE, Pa., Aug. 6 (UPI) -- A member of the Penn State University Board of Trustees Monday appealed harsh NCAA sanctions levied against the school's football program.

Ryan McCombie, who joined the board in June, challenged the sanctions as an unfair punishment, ESPN.com reported.

The college sports sanctioning body last month banned the school from bowl competition for four years, levied $60 million in fines and vacated all of the wins under the late Coach Joe Paterno dating to 1998.

The penalties came in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal. An official Penn State investigation carried out by former FBI Director Louis Freeh determined Paterno and others concealed key facts relating to the crimes of the longtime former assistant coach.

Sandusky was convicted on 45 counts of sexual abuse against 10 boys over a 15-year period.

University President Rodney Erickson signed a consent decree with the NCAA agreeing to the sanctions, which McCombie called "null and void" because Erickson "lacked the legal authority" to enter into such an agreement without the board's approval, ESPN.com reported.

The trustee also claimed Freeh's report "contains findings and conclusions that are contrary to the evidence presented."