STATE COLLEGE — Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett said today he will file a federal lawsuit against the NCAA in a bid to overturn the hefty sanctions imposed on Penn State University in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal.

At a news conference at the university campus in State College, Corbett said the NCAA exceeded its authority in imposing “harsh penalties” over the abuse committed by Sandusky, a former assistant football coach. He said the NCAA’s sanctions, which the university agreed to, harm past, present and future students.

He said the antitrust suit would be filed later today in federal court in Harrisburg. If he wins, all the NCAA penalties would be eliminated.

The sanctions imposed in July included a $60 million fine for child abuse prevention grants and a four-year bowl game ban for the university’s football program.

Corbett said he waited until now to file the lawsuit because he wanted to thoroughly research the legal issues and did not want it to interfere with football season.

Corbett, a Republican, said his office did not coordinate its legal strategy with state Attorney General-elect Kathleen Kane, who is scheduled to be sworn in Jan. 15. Instead, the current attorney general, Linda Kelly, agreed to grant the governor authority to pursue the matter.