Watch CBS News

Report: Rutgers AD Julie Hermann Made Off-Color Sandusky Joke In Staff Meeting

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Earlier this week, Rutgers athletic director Julie Hermann apologized on behalf of the athletic department for the "regrettable actions of a handful of Rutgers fans."

The apology was in regard to inappropriate T-shirts and signs that were on display at High Point Solutions Stadium when Rutgers opened its Big Ten schedule against Penn State.

Now, just days later, the AD is in some hot water herself for some questionable behavior.

According to NJ.com, Hermann made a joke about the child-abuse case involving former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky at a staff meeting last fall.

Hermann made a remark about "reaching out and touching the donors," according to the website. Her punchline? Don't do it "in a Sandusky way."

"Julie's comment was an off-the-cuff response to a give-and-take interaction urging the fundraising team to reach out and touch the donors," Pete McDonough, senior vice president for external affairs, told NJ.com. "There probably isn't a person alive today who hasn't made an impromptu remark in a private meeting that probably shouldn't have been said.

"Even taken out of context, this single comment was not directed at Penn State, its students, staff or faculty.''

This is just the latest in a string of controversies that Hermann has been at the center of since she was hired in March of 2013 to replace Tim Pernetti, who resigned following the Mike Rice scandal.

"I know there were two or three of us that looked at each other, and I said, 'You gotta be kidding going down that road,'" one employee told the website. "Comparing relationships with donors or with people in organizations that we want to drum up and get money from in that relationship, and saying we have to get close to them and touch them? And she goes 'not like Sandusky.'"

You May Also Be Interested In These Stories

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.