Los Angeles, Calif. – In the week leading up to the 101st Rose Bowl, the buzz word surrounding the Florida State Seminoles has been “perception”. Seminoles quarterback Jameis Winston and head coach Jimbo Fisher, as well as the contingent of media at the LA Hotel Downtown, have floated the word around on numerous occasions.
In one year, Florida State has garnered more hatred and speculation than any team in the country. It has been portrayed as the evil to Oregon’s good . They’ve been deemed the underdog – up to eight and a half points, the books say – due to their close margins of victory on the season.
Through it all, however, the Seminoles have accomplished what every college program in the nation aspires to: they’ve won. 29 games in a row, in fact. Focusing on how they’re seen by everyone else is not a concern for Florida State.
“It’s not really my job to try to figure out what everyone thinks about us,” Seminoles wide receiver Rashad Greene said.
Quarterback Jameis Winston added, “Perception is reality like I say. If they say we’re not a good team, okay. We just keep playing and we just love this game so much, we don’t focus on that.”
Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher believes that his group of players are tremendous on the field and as people.
“We’re going to do what we do every day,” he said. “And perception, we can’t help what people think of us. We keep doing what we do. We believe in our system. We believe we have better kids than we have players. I’ve said that all alon.”
And for himself, Winston has reiterated time and again this week that the things he’s done over the course of the last calendar year don’t accurately depict the person he is.
“I know who I am,” Winston claimed. “The guys in the locker room know who I am and people not involved with our family don’t know who I am so like I said, perception is reality.”
In Winston’s case, his immature reality that people perceive has been painted by a streak of events as consistent as Florida State’s comeback calling card this year. He’s been involved in a sexual assault investigation and he’s shouted obscenities on the Florida State campus, to name a few.
While Winston is making as many headlines off the field as he is on it, Fisher describes him as a genuine person.
According to Fisher, when Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota was in New York, culminating his awards tour with the hoisting of the Heisman trophy, Winston was busy playing backyard football with local kids.
“I mean, the guy is such a kindhearted people guy,” Fisher said. “He loves people. He loves to be around people, not from a standpoint of ‘I’m Jameis Winston.’ He generally likes people. He’s fun to be around. He’s genuine. He’s honest. He’s just a good guy. He really is.”
No matter how it’s perceived, this is the team Florida State has been: A headline-grabbing squad allergic to losing.
“We’re going to continue to do things the right way, the Florida State way, and we believe that’s definitely the right way and be good people,” Fisher said. “In time we’ll see.”
Follow Joseph Hoyt on Twitter @JoeJHoyt