Unless he defies seemingly insurmountable odds, Jerry Sandusky will die in the custody of the Pennsylvania prison system.
Sandusky, who sexually abused at least 10 young men repeatedly over a number of years while they were entrusted to his tuteledge and protection, deserves the sentence. The evidence against him was overwhelming. And, while an appeal has been promised, it is unlikely that it will go very far.
The finality of the sentence brings closure to only one aspect of the scandal that rocked the Pennsylvania State University to its core, severely damaged its storied football program, and led to the dismissal of the university's president, among other executives.
The rest of the investigation and subsequent prosecution of some of those who allegedly knew about Sandusky's crimes but either failed or consciously delayed reporting them to authorities is another matter.
At its base, the case against Jerry Sandusky, while it generated headlines each day it was presented in court, was much like the prosecution of virtually every sexual assault charge. The format is pretty cut-and-dried.
The balance of the Sandusky-Penn State Affair will be much more complicated, and, protracted.
So, if you thought you had heard the last of the Penn State Scandal as a white-haired pedophile was trundled off to prison, you were mistaken.
The whole sordid mess will be played out again in court, and only at that conclusion will the passage of time start to fog the memory of a time of disillusionment in an institution whose reputation was thought to be 24-carat.