I'll admit that I don't recall doing the things Sandusky would call playful with anyone across generations but I certainly horsed around in showers with other kids as a child.
I got the impression from Pendergrat's book that Sandusky and Paterno didn't really get along. It would seem strange to me, especially after Sandusky retired from coaching in 1999, that Paterno would have done anything to protect Sandusky including looking the other way if he thought Sandusky was molesting children anywhere, but particularly at his Penn State facilities.
The callousness you cannot fathom only makes sense if you buy the media narrative. If Penn State people thought little or nothing about Sandusky horsing around with kids, then there was no callousness.
Did you check out the links I suggested?
ML/NJ
I played sports and belonged to the YMCA. I never witnessed an adult male horsing around naked with a child in the showers. The only witness to this crime states Sandusky was raping the child. That witness should have done more but instead informed Paterno. The three leaders of the institution when informed of the crime never looked into the welfare of the child. This isn’t the only crime Sandusky was accused. He had his trial and was convicted.
One link is broken the other link is a book on Amazon.