At some point in the near future, this question will have answered itself. With all of the awfulness going on at Penn State right now and the complete and utter failure of everyone involved, the end solution is obvious.
That said, Joe Paterno will not be fired this week. In fact, whenever Joe leaves, the word "fired" will not be used at all. He probably won't "resign" either.
Joe Paterno will not step down during the season.
You can go ahead and put even money on JoePa "deciding" to step down after Penn State's bowl game this year, clearing the way for Urban Meyer to come in and save the program, and the school, from itself. Paterno and everyone else will do everything they can to make it sound like Paterno was thinking of retiring before all of this sickening news, but no one will believe them. As they shouldn't.
But what if that doesn't happen? What if Penn State decides, in spite of the evidence and in spite the moral and ethical concerns raised, Joe Paterno is kept on as head coach at Penn St. What if Joe Paterno is still the head coach at Penn State in 2013 when they are scheduled to meet the Orange at the Meadowlands in the first of a three-game series (the other two games are scheduled for 2020-2021)?
Should Syracuse University try to get out of the deal to avoid being complicit?
I suppose it depends on what you'd want such a move to accomplish. By continuing to play against a Penn State school that allows Paterno to continue coaching, are you in a way agreeing with that decision? By asking out, do you make a statement that says you will not associate yourself with a school, program and coach who allows those types of things to happen and then pulls back when it comes time to punish those who did nothing (or very little) to prevent it?
Could SU even get out of the deal if they wanted to? Would they have to pay a penalty? Perhaps, I don't know. Would that be beside the point? Even if you knew you couldn't get out of the deal, wouldn't you want to see SU make a public stink about it?
Like I said, it's likely this whole situation sorts itself out in the next 2-3 months. I'm sure SU would stay mum for the time being anyway as there's a lot of legal issues that need to be sorted out in the meantime. But as Syracuse fans, it's important to keep a close eye on this.
It's one thing to see someone steal something and then say nothing out of self-interest. It's another thing altogether to allow what happened at Penn State on all levels to stand without everyone being held accountable (something they never did to Sandusky). I'm pretty sure PSU will do the right thing, or have the right thing forced upon them. But if not, it might be up to schools like Syracuse to send the final message.