State College, PA (Sports Network) - A group of Penn State football players, led by seniors Michael Zordich and Michael Mauti, said they plan to stick together after the NCAA levied heavy sanctions against the program earlier this week in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal.

The NCAA gave the current players the option of transferring and becoming eligible immediately at other schools, but the group on Wednesday gave no indication of making such a move.

"We want to let the nation know that we are proud of who we are, we're the true Penn Staters, we're going to stick together through this and do everything we can for the university," said Zordich. "We know it's not going to be easy, but we know what we're made of. We know there are going to be tough times ahead, but we're willing and able to fight and stick together to the end."

The NCAA slapped Penn State with a four-year postseason ban, five years of probation and a massive scholarship reduction over the next four years as part of the penalties stemming from the Sandusky sexual child abuse scandal and the Freeh Report, which revealed the university's failure to collectively respond to allegations against the former assistant football coach who was convicted last month.

"We take this as an opportunity to create our own legacy," Mauti added. "This program was not built by one man and this program sure as hell is not going to get torn down by one man. This program was built on every alumni, every single player that came before us, built on their backs."

Penn State, under new head coach Bill O'Brien, is also ineligible for the Big Ten championship. The Nittany Lions will begin the 2012 season on September 1 at Beaver Stadium against Ohio University.

The Sports Network