Nike co-founder Phil Knight changes opinion, calls Freeh Report on Joe Paterno and Penn State 'unjustified'

In the wake of the Paterno family's rebuttal to the Freeh report, Nike co-founder Phil Knight has changed his opinion. He now backs the Paternos, and has issued a strong criticism of the Freeh Report and the NCAA.

When the Freeh report was first published, Knight said he was "saddened" by former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno's "missteps that led to heartbreaking consequences."

Nike went on to remove Paterno's name from the child care center at its headquarters in Beaverton, Ore.

Now Knight has changed course.

"With the release of the report by the King and Spalding law firm, including analysis by former Attorney General Dick Thornburgh and former FBI profiler James Clemente, it is clear that the findings of the Freeh Report were unjustified and unsubstantiated," Knight said in a statement given to ESPN. "When this tragic story first unfolded Joe cautioned all of us to slow down and carefully gather the facts before jumping to conclusions. We owed it to the victims, he said, to get to the truth. It was counsel we all should have followed."

Knight called the Freeh Report's conclusions "theories and assertions rather than solid charges backed by solid evidence."

"On reflection I may have unintentionally contributed to a rush to judgment," Knight added.

He went on to blast the NCAA for "grandstanding" in its punishment of Penn State. Sanctions included a four-year bowl ban, a $60 million fine and the vacating of 112 of Paterno's wins going back to 1998.

"The NCAA's actions are exposed as totally unwarranted," Knight said. "The NCAA acted outside its charter and rendered judgment absent any kind of investigation or judicial hearing."

Nike supplies athletic apparel to Penn State and many other prominent NCAA programs.