Florida State suspends Jameis Winston for game after vulgar comment

Rolle, who said he’s known Winston since he was a high schooler, claimed the quarterback “has a good heart” and is “a great leader,” but that he’s struggling to mature in the public spotlight.

“I haven’t been able to wrestle him down in Tallahassee and talk to him and speak life into him,” said Rolle. “But if I could, I would tell him, ‘Look, you have a huge microscope on you. It’s difficult to mitigate the pressures you’re feeling every single day, just being an absolute rockstar here in Tallahassee and around the country. But, my brother, you need to because people are counting on you. People look up to you. People see you as a role model and as a leader. And with that call, there comes a certain level of responsibility.’”

Of course, it’s not that simple: Abdullah grew up in Birmingham, Alabama with Winston, and told the AP the two are friends. Winston was suspended for Florida State’s overtime victory against Clemson after making inappropriate comments on campus. Abdullah suggested Winston should handle the spotlight better, and also suggested that’s something the young quarterback is able of handling:

“Every situation you do, you represent not only yourself, the university, your family, people who go to the university,” [Abdullah said.] “So being that guy who’s the star down there, he holds much bigger weight than he realizes sometimes ... I know he’s much better than what he’s shown.“Abdullah also told the AP some of Winston’s issues may result from a desire to impress his teammates, with much work to be done in the running back’s view.

The joint statement from Florida State interim president Dr. Garnett S. Stokes and athletic director Stan Wilcox, per Tomahawk Nation, read, “Based upon the results of our continuing investigation of Tuesday’s incident involving Jameis Winston, we have decided to not play him for the entire game against Clemson on Saturday night.”

Follow-up reports suggest there might be more to the story:

Star Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston has been suspended for the first half of Saturday’s primetime game against Clemson for yelling an obscenity, which means backup quarterback Sean Maguire will start the game.

In two years at Florida State, Maguire has only thrown 26 passes, so considering how big this game is, it was a safe bet that Maguire wouldn’t be playing. His parents apparently made that bet.

Florida State announced that it has suspended starting quarterback Jameis Winston for the first half of the Clemson game after Winston yelled obscenities on campus on Tuesday.

Winston imitated a popular internet meme and shouted, “f--k her right in the p---y,” which was reported by many students. That followed Winston’s citation for shoplifting, a sexual assault accusation, and some relatively minor run-ins.