He’s been the toast of Tallahassee since leading the hometown university of Florida State to a 41-13 victory over the University of Pittsburgh on Labor Day night.

The redshirt freshman threw 365 yards and four touchdowns in the contest, and his name instantly became connected with college football’s most heralded award, the
Heisman Trophy.

A little over two months had passed, and “Famous” Jameis Winston had Florida State undefeated and was the absolute front runner for the Heisman after a few shaky performances from last year’s winner
Johnny Manziel.

It was Winston’s play on the field, his confident, yet calm demeanor and charm that got his name into the headlines.

But on Nov. 14, his name made the headlines for very different reasons.  The Florida State Attorney’s Office opened an investigation into a sexual assault complaint involving Winston that was originally filed with the Tallahassee Police Department on Dec. 7, 2012, during his first year on campus.

The case was originally listed as inactive in February after the alleged victim said through her attorney she did not want to go forward with it anymore.

After media dug out this potential flaw in the brightest young star in college football, the accuser was told to re-examine the case and eventually opened it back up for investigation. Winston became the subject of not just the sports world, but many other media
outlets.

After a little more than 20 days of investigating, it was concluded that no charges would be handed out to the Seminoles’ sensation, and he and Florida State would not get any
punishment.

But in the process, Winston lost a lot of fans, and who can blame them? The fact that his name was even connected to a sexual assault case certainly raises questions about his lifestyle. I completely get that.

Another thing that raises questions is the fact that he is a star football player, and people in the Tallahassee area didn’t want this dark cloud to overshadow the chase for a Seminole national championship, something the program hasn’t held since 2000.

But here’s the deal: he was accused of the crime, not convicted of it. These are two completely
separate things.

There are now people who have said they are hesitant to vote Winston for the Heisman Trophy and won’t ever accept him as part of the prestigious Heisman fraternity that has seen the likes of Doug Flutie, Barry Sanders, Bo Jackson and more current NFL stars in Cam Newton and Sam Bradford. Oh yeah, and since I’m a Wisconsin boy, born and raised, Ron Dayne back in 1999, too.

Nevertheless, there has been no better player in college football this year than Jameis Winston. He leads the nation by averaging 10.9 yards per pass, is the top-10 in touchdowns thrown and has surpassed 3,800 yards through the air. He boasts the best quarterback rating in the country, and most importantly, he has Florida State in the BCS National title game Jan. 6 against Auburn University.

The Heisman Trophy is supposed to be handed to the best player in college football. Had Winston been charged with sexual assault, tossed in jail and been suspended for the rest of the season, he absolutely should not be striking the pose next weekend at the presentation of the award in New York City.

But he wasn’t convicted of it, and the United States’ judicial system has always worked in an innocent-until-proven-guilty format. That shouldn’t change for Famous Jameis, who has a larger spotlight than other people in this same situation.

As I said, being accused of a crime isn’t the same as being convicted for it. Think back to when you were a kid and your mom accused you of reaching into the cookie jar and taking the last one, even though it was one of your siblings. You wouldn’t want to get unfairly punished.

Obviously, stealing a cookie isn’t anywhere near the same planet as the magnitude of sexual assault, but the same idea applies. And for that, I fully expect voters to make the right decision and welcome the 6-foot-4, 227 pound 19-year old from Hueytown, Ala., to the fraternity. Strike a pose, Jameis.