At the end of last year, Jameis Winston became the youngest Heisman Trophy winner when he was named college football’s most outstanding player on December 14 in New York.
The Heisman trophy is given annually to talented players in honor of the innovative player and coach John Heisman. Heisman invented the center snap as an easy way to get the ball in the quarterback’s hands. Heisman also innovated the use of pulling guards for running plays and the infamous hidden-ball trick.
Winston received 668 first-place votes and 2,205 points. He finished 1,501 points ahead of Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron for the seventh-largest margin of victory in Heisman history, despite being left off 115 of the 900 ballots that were returned, according to NBC news.
Winston is the nation’s top-rated passer and has led the Seminoles to a spot in the BCS championship game against Auburn on January 6.
“The former five-star recruit from Bessemer, Alabama made college football look easy from his very first game,” stated the Associated Press of NBC News. “ On Labor Day night, on national television, Winston went 25 for 27 for 356 yards and four touchdowns in a victory at Pittsburgh.”
As Winston stood to receive this prestigious award, he walked to his parents, hugging and kissing them, before he walked to the stage to give his acceptance speech.
“I cannot explain the feeling that I have inside right now,” Winston said. “I’m so overwhelmed. It’s awesome.”
According to ESPN reporters, Winston teared up a bit when mentioning his parents in the speech, saying that they had been through so much with him in the last year, especially in the last few months with the investigation.
In December 2012, a student from Florida State University approached the Tallahassee Police Department, claiming that he had raped her. She said that a man about 5’11 with dreads had molested her. However, Winston has short hair and is 6’4, so at first these statements were brushed off. But, after a series of tests, Winston’s DNA was mysteriously found in the woman.This cold case was handed over to the state attorney’s office for a full investigation once news broke of the accusation. Winston’s attorney said the sex was consensual. Now, this woman and her family are pressing charges against WInston, and are planning for a civil lawsuit. Many critics have said this was a clumsy move because Winston could afford some heavy duty defense lawyers.
It has still not been clarified how Winston plans to proceed with this difficult situation. On December 7, 2013, Winston walked away from an interviewer when she started questioning him about the charges.
Winston’s supporters believe that this woman may have had sexual relations with Winston, and is now accusing him of rape because she know of the football star’s potential future success.
“I mean, you can’t deny what they found, but at the same time, Jameis just seems like a guy that genuinely cares about his sport and his team,” said junior Scott Angstadt. “I can’t see him jeopardizing that.”
Despite all of this, many stand behind Winston because they see past this investigation, and appreciate him for his raw skill.