Reports continue to swirl regarding Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston. The Florida State sophomore quarterback simply cannot escape the headlines. Just hours after head coach Jimbo Fisher declared his belief that he did not think Winston would miss any games, the school announced that they would investigate a report regarding the number of autographs authenticated by a memorabilia company.
ESPN first reported that Fisher approached Winston following the team’s 38-20 win over Syracuse, asking his star quarterback if he had signed autographs for money. According to the same source, Winston said he did not participate. Winston had been previously linked to the same company that Georgia running back Todd Gurley was associated with leading to his full year suspension. James Spence Authentication verified about 500 Gurley autographs while also validating about 340 Winston autographs.
The search was done almost completely through Florida State, which did not have contact with either the NCAA or ACC regarding the findings.
“Kids sign things all the time. So, what do you want them to do, stop signing stuff? We could make them not have any fans from that standpoint and not sign for anybody. That’s what it’s going to come to, and that’s a shame for college football, that somebody exploits a kid. Now, if they’re getting paid for it, then I don’t have any knowledge of that. I don’t believe Jameis did,” Fisher said.
Most autograph experts believe that the autographs were a result of an autograph signing and cited the serial numbers attached to the autographs as the main source of support. Each large group of autographs had consecutive serial numbers meaning they came from the same owner. The investigation remains open, but things don’t appear too positive for Jameis Winston.
*Section Photo credit to Jeremy Brevard, USA Today Sports; Featured Photo (above) credit to Fox Sports
