Florida State has informed quarterback Jameis Winston he will be facing a disciplinary hearing regarding a potential violation of the university’s code of conduct. This raises some questions regarding Winston’s eligibility status with the football team, but Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher came to the support of his Heisman Trophy quarterback Monday when addressing the media.
“I don’t want a victim to anything, but there is not a victim because there was no crime,” Fisher said Monday, according to The Orlando Sentinel. “We’re convicting a guy over things that are not true, based on evidence.”
Winston was never charged after being accused of a sexual assault from December 2012, but the handling of the investigation has been highly scrutinized from all angles. Florida State is now being investigated by the U.S. Department of Education for potential violations of Title IX, and the relationship with Tallahassee police has been profiled in a pair of national investigative reports.
Winston’s eligibility with the football team has not changed in light of these recent developments. He played this past weekend on the road against Syracuse, and performed very well.
“It is credit that he deserves,” Fisher said. “Because he can put things away like a man does, compartmentalize things, take care of his teammates, take care of his family and take care of everyone because he’s very mature. And the reason he can do that is he knows the facts.”
Fisher took aim with media reporting the Winston drama as well.
“I think we need to be more responsible in our reporting, opinions and based off facts and not write articles that are half true and not all the way true,” Fisher said.
But the world needs more hot sports takes, Jimbo! Fisher is right though. These are sensitive stories coming out of the Florida State community, and it would not be fair to slant a story in one direction to sell a story at the expense of a person who has not been charged or is innocent. Fisher is putting his integrity on the line in supporting Winston. For Fisher’s sake, hopefully, it is not something he will regret.