There seems to be a trend going on with Florida State University football players, and it is not a good look for the team or the school at all. For the second time this week, a Seminoles player has been charged with battery. Earlier this week, quarterback De’Andre Johnson was arrested on misdemeanor battery charges for punching a woman in the face at a bar, all of which was caught on surveillance video. On Friday afternoon, running back Dalvin Cook was also arrested and charged with the same crime as his teammate. Coincidentally, the incident between Cook and the woman he is accused of hitting happened one night before the De’Andre Johnson altercation. Both players have been suspended indefinitely from the team.
Like Johnson, Cook was also out at a bar when it all went down. The victim, a 21-year-old female, has shared her side of the story with ESPN. According to her, she was waiting outside of Clyde’s and Costello’s, a local Tallahassee bar, when she was approached by one of Cook’s friends. The friend asked for her number but she said no because she has a boyfriend. He then left but came back with Cook. Things quickly got out of control after an argument broke out between Cook and the woman and it led to him punching her in the face several times. While there was no video evidence of the altercation, prosecutors obtained photos of the victim’s injuries to corroborate her story.
One can imagine that all of this drama is probably pretty stressful for FSU head coach Jimbo Fisher, who is just trying to prep his boys to make another run at the National Championship. After the news about De’Andre Johnson and Dalvin Cook broke, Fisher released a statement to the fans and the public.
As a result of all the highly publicized domestic violence incidents that occurred over the past year and a half, there has been a huge focus on fixing the issue, especially within the NFL. If these two young men ever wanted any chance at playing professionally after college, the last thing they should have done is get themselves in a situation like this. It’s unfortunate that they have pretty much thrown away their futures over a moment of complete foolishness but they really have no one to blame but themselves. Some people may try and defend their actions but at the end of the day, there is zero excuse for attacking a woman.
