I’ll start off this column with an apology.
The wunderkind University of Oregon Ducks are sailing on to the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday after a gruesome and completely satisfying defeat of the reigning Florida State University Seminoles on Jan. 1 in the first-ever college football playoff. After I witnessed this 59-20 demolition of the Seminoles’ dreams of a repeat national championship, I was a jerk on Facebook. Beyond taunting a poor athletic performance, I insulted FSU students and their alma mater. It wasn’t a cool move, and I’m sorry.
My unabashed content for a sorely desired FSU defeat doesn’t lie in the rivalry between UF and FSU. It doesn’t even stem from jealousy of a stunning 29-1 record.
It lies in my newfound disgust in the FSU football program and school administration’s handling of famed quarterback Jameis Winston.
For background, I was born to an avid FSU fan: my father, an alumnus of the business school. Like, my dad had legendary FSU coach Bobby Bowden sign my first birthday card ever, a note dated April 29, 1993, the day after my birth, which is now framed and on display in my bedroom at home: “To Colleen, Happy 1st Day! Love, Bobby Bowden.”
My dad taught me the tomahawk chop around the time I learned how to walk. He outfitted toddler me in an FSU cheerleading costume. My dad even refused to sign the residency form when I committed treason and decided to accept my admission to UF for its stellar journalism school (which FSU does not have) until my mom (an alumna of Florida International University) threatened to send me to school out of state where college costs would be tenfold.
Heck, I’m the girl who wrote last semester’s Alligator editorial of UF standing with FSU in the wake of the FSU library shooting. You get the picture.
While the Heisman trophy winner has just announced that he will declare for the 2015 NFL draft, Winston can still create mischief between today and April 30. He may think he’s ready for professional football, but his maturity ain’t.
He has been an ongoing public relations nightmare in Tallahassee throughout his student career. A lackadaisical investigation by Tallahassee Police into a student’s claim filed December 2012 that Winston sexually assaulted her resulted in a failure to charge Winston after the State Attorney found insufficient evidence to criminally charge him — conveniently before the ‘Noles were crowned national champions in January 2014. Winston was recently cleared of FSU student conduct violations, and his accuser fired back with a lawsuit filed against FSU on Wednesday.
In that two-year span, Winston suffered no suspension connected to the allegation.
On the lighter, dumber side of things, Winston was caught pilfering crab legs from a Tallahassee Publix in April after he “forgot” to pay. He was cited — not arrested — and suspended from the baseball team (thank God it was baseball season, FSU thought) for four days after completing 20 hours of community service.
Then in September, Winston actually stood up in the FSU student union and yelled “F*** her right in the p****”— before being cleared from student conduct violations for his alleged rape. For that, he was given first a half-game suspension as punishment before — gasp! — he was slapped with a suspension for a whole whopping football game in a conference game against Clemson.
Here’s my beef: Why is he still a student attending FSU?
Gators, we’ve had our fair share of unruly, entitled football players. Since I enrolled at UF in January 2012, I’ve read and helped produce numerous stories of players’ arrests.
Let’s compare apples to apples. Quarterback to quarterback. Winston vs. Treon Harris.
No, athletically they are nowhere near the same. There’s a reason Harris was our No. 3 guy, but he’s all we’ve got.
Harris was accused of sexually assaulting another student in October right after UF had a serial sexual predator on the loose. Personally, I was angry and wanted him to be prosecuted to the fullest.
Within 24 hours after allegations against Harris surfaced, he was suspended indefinitely and banned from campus. The guy couldn’t even go to his room in Springs Residence Hall for a change of clothing.
Four days later, the complaint was dropped and Harris was reinstated on the team. And a few weeks later, the whole report was released by University Police.
That’s what I call real discipline by University Police, then-coach Will Muschamp and UF.
That’s the difference between FSU and UF. We do not have more moral or holier-than-thou students. The difference is how UF deals with the miscreants — and how we have no problem leaving them in the past.
So no, I don’t have any qualms over severing my loyalty with FSU. I cannot support an organization that did its utmost to keep a jersey on Winston, despite his obvious disrespect for his teammates and his school.
And I’ve lost all respect for the school I was born to love.
FSU students are appalled at how the whole country wants to see them fail, reducing them to “haters.” Hey Seminoles: They’re not haters. They don’t give a damn about your record. They’re rational human beings who know a poor judgment call — or three — when they see one.
Tebow failed in the pros, but he’s a virtuous man. And I’m terribly proud he’s the face of our university. I’ll take humility over controversy any day.
On Monday, with pep in my step, I’ll be hopping onto the Ducks bandwagon to cheer for Oregon once more. Because while they defeated FSU fair and square, they also brought victory to those who believe Winston got away with way too much. They put an unbelievable season to rest for a team that not only kept Winston as the face of their university, but defended him throughout shameful controversy.
Oregon: Show no mercy to the Ohio State University Buckeyes, because Urban Meyer sucks.
Colleen Wright is a UF journalism senior and a former managing editor of the Alligator.
[A version of this story ran on page 7 on 1/9/2015 under the headline “Why Oregon Ducks are America's team"]
