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Jameis Winston

Armour: Put blame at Florida State where it belongs

Nancy Armour
USA TODAY Sports
Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher has had to answer for accusations made against several of his players.

When both your starting quarterback and leading rusher are under investigation by either the school or the authorities, that's not a witch hunt.

It's a problem.

It is beside the point that Florida State running back Karlos Williams hasn't been charged in a drug-related robbery, and isn't considered a suspect. Or that the attorney for the alleged victim in a domestic violence case involving Williams says his client wants the investigation dropped. Or that Jameis Winston has never been formally charged for any of his misdeeds.

Programs that operate with class, dignity and high character, as Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher defiantly says his does, do not repeatedly generate headlines better suited for a crime blotter than a sports section. They don't have top-notch defense attorneys on speed dial.

And they don't brush aside questionable behavior with conspiracy theories.

Williams is the latest Seminole to run afoul of the law under Fisher's watch. These weren't harmless pranks, minor transgressions or cases of "boys being boys." Battery. Parole violation. Theft. Drug use. Property damage. Sexual assault.

In the case of Williams, Tallahassee police aren't releasing details because of the ongoing investigation. But they have said the running back is a suspect in a domestic battery incident last week. A man who was robbed during a drug deal this summer also said that Williams was his "hook up" for marijuana, and that it was Williams who arranged the meeting between him and the men who allegedly robbed him.

Williams was not present during the deal or the robbery.

To hear Fisher tell it, however, all of his players are fine, upstanding citizens who spend their free time rescuing puppies, helping the elderly and prepping for interviews with the folks who select Rhodes scholars.

Winston? Hasn't done a thing wrong. Williams? He's a tremendous kid. Anyone who raises legitimate questions about player behavior and Fisher and Florida State's responsibilities for it? They're clearly haters. Or they work for ESPN.

Look, there are plenty of decent, law-abiding young men on Florida State's roster. And the Seminoles are hardly the first team with problem children. When teenagers and 20-somethings are getting their first taste of freedom and being treated like rock stars, there are bound to be some missteps.

That, however, is where Fisher is supposed to come in.

As any parent can attest, it's no fun to be the heavy. It's even more difficult when disciplining the Heisman Trophy winner or the player who has scored almost half of your rushing touchdowns could mean the difference between playing for a second consecutive national title and being exiled to oblivion, aka the Chick-fil-A Bowl.

But part of Fisher's job is to help his players become adults, to take on the role of parent when their real ones are miles away. At least, that's what he — and every other coach — promise when they're sitting in a recruit's living room.

Instead of educating, Fisher has enabled, fostering a culture where accountability is an annoyance for other people and athletic talent is enough to absolve almost any sin. And Florida State and its faithful go right along with him.

The sad part is that instead of protecting his players, Fisher is setting them up for failure.

There will come a day when they will have to live in the real world, when no one will care they were once hotshot football players, let alone give them a pass because of it. Only then will Winston, Williams, Tyler Hunter, James Wilder Jr. and all the others whose misbehavior Fisher let slide realize there are consequences for their actions.

That's a problem for somebody else, however. Fisher and Florida State decided long ago that integrity is a small price to pay for a national championship.

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