* Sandusky admitted having taken a "strong interest" in young boys, but told Costas that his actions had been misconstrued in a sexual way.
"I'm a very passionate person in terms of trying to make a difference in the lives of some young people," Sandusky said. "I've worked very hard to try to connect with them. To make them feel good about themselves. To be something significant in their lives."
Penn State's trustees have hired a Pittsburgh-based law firm to represent them in relation to the child-sex scandal, for which two ousted university employees also face criminal charges. Jamie Moss, a spokeswoman for the firm, Reed Smith, said yesterday that the firm will be working on issues related to the arrest of Sandusky, and the case against administrators Tim Curley and Gary Schultz, charged with not properly alerting authorities to suspected abuse and perjury.
Moss declined to say whether Reed Smith would be focusing on criminal or civil matters.
In other Penn State news:
* Hall of Fame running back Franco Harris may lose his spot on the board of a Pittsburgh scholarship program for comments he made in support of Paterno.
The board of the Pittsburgh Promise was to meet last night to consider Harris' status after Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl sent board members a letter condemning Harris' support of Paterno.
Harris played for Paterno at Penn State before helping the Pittsburgh Steelers win four Super Bowls.
He said last week that the school's trustees showed "no courage" by firing Paterno in the wake of the sex-abuse scandal.
* A former graduate-assistant offensive-line coach told a New York radio station that it would have been impossible for Paterno to have been unaware of the allegations surrounding Sandusky.
"Impossible, impossible. Joe knows everything, Joe knows everything - everything that goes on at that campus, everything that goes on clearly in the football program," Matt Paknis, who worked under Paterno in the late '80s, told WFAN-AM, according to the Huffington Post. "It's like the [Bernie] Madoff thing.
"Not only did he cover it up, but there's no way that this wasn't apparent."
* Rod Erickson, who has been serving as Penn State's acting president since Graham Spanier was removed from his post on Nov. 9, no longer has the word "acting" in his title.
University spokesman Bill Mahon said yesterday that Erickson is the university's new boss.
