Sports

Winston Brings Spotlight to Alabama Hometown for Draft

Published

11 years ago

May 1, 2015

James Winston reacts with his grandmother Myrtle Winston to learning he is the first pick in the NFL draft Thursday, April 30, 2015 in Bessemer, Ala. Winston was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. (AP Photo/Hal Yeager)

Jameis Winston reacts with his grandmother Myrtle Winston to learning he is the first pick in the NFL draft Thursday, April 30, 2015 in Bessemer, Ala. Winston was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. (AP Photo/Hal Yeager)

JOHN ZENOR, AP Sports Writer

BESSEMER, Ala. (AP) — Jameis Winston celebrated the NFL draft his way, creating his own memorable moment with family and friends in his hometown. It was his mother who handed him his No. 3 Buccaneers jersey after he became the top pick, not the NFL commissioner.

For Winston, it was perfect.

“They actually felt the moment with me,” Winston told The Associated Press after the draft, clad in a dark suit with a gold tie and gold and black shoes. “I wasn’t just walking up by myself and getting taken away. They’re actually here with me right now, and it’s a blessing.”

The Heisman Trophy-winning Florida State quarterback was driven up to the spacious home of a family friend at 8:01 p.m. ET Thursday night, just a couple of minutes before the call came. A grinning Winston hung up the phone, turned to his family and announced he was heading to Tampa Bay.

“If you watched any Florida State games last year, we always cut it close,” Winston quipped about his arrival time. “But what happened? We always came through.”

He delivered again on Thursday — flashing smiles and poise in the face of the bright spotlight he’s already accustomed to. This time, he brought the national spotlight with him to Bessemer.

Earlier Thursday, camera crews filed in and out of Hueytown High School, where Winston’s No. 8 jersey is retired.

Everyone was in town on to see Winston, who skipped the televised festivities in Chicago to celebrate in his hometown, next door to Hueytown.

And he did it in grand style.

The home had a fountain in the front, a huge Winston banner on one side and tables in the back for guests, including Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher. Traffic on the normally serene tree-lined road moved at a crawl beforehand. The scene had the feel of what was happening hundreds of miles away in Chi-Town.

This, however, was all just for Winston.

Commissioner Roger Goodell stepped to the podium in Chicago and ended the suspense, saying, “With the first pick in the 2015 NFL draft, the Tampa Buccaneers select Jameis Winston, quarterback, from Florida State.”

Fisher beamed like a proud father before the pick was announced.

“It’s just a great night,” Fisher said. “It’s a night to be joyful and happy for him.”

Plenty of people in these suburban Birmingham communities with a combined population of about 43,000 had planned to watch the draft and see if the Buccaneers would pick Winston.

“Just like we watched Bo Jackson,” said Bessemer’s Harry W. Carey.

Jackson is another Heisman-winning superstar who hails from Bessemer — and incidentally went No. 1 in the 1986 draft, to the Bucs.

Holly Adams, who taught Winston AP physics in 2011 at Hueytown High, said she hadn’t heard much buzz about the draft.

“Not really just because it’s become such a common thing in Hueytown to hear about Jameis,” Adams said. “But any time you get introduced to someone and they say, ‘Oh, this person teaches at Hueytown’ or ‘she’s from Hueytown,’ that’s the first thing they ask you. Do you know Jameis? Did you teach Jameis.”

Winston, though, remains a polarizing figure even in his hometown.

He was involved in several highly publicized off the field incidents while at Florida State, including the infamous crab legs caper. posted an Instagram photo of him celebrating on draft night with a tray of crab legs. Winston, showing he’s willing to make fun of himself, posted an Instagram photo of him celebrating with a tray of crab legs.

In a more serious allegation, a former FSU student has filed a lawsuit against Winston, accusing him of rape, assault, false imprisonment and emotional distress. Winston has said the sex was consensual and was never arrested or charged.

“We know more about him than we do any player in this draft,” Fisher said. “Every part of his life has been picked apart.

“People will be shocked with how he represents” the Bucs, the coach said.

Even those who expressed concern seem to be pulling for him.

Michael Raymond, a big Alabama fan from nearby Oak Grove, has mixed feelings about Winston, citing other incidents during the quarterback’s college career. He worries that “it’s almost a Johnny Manziel thing going on.”

He added, “being a quarterback, since they’re the key to everything, they’re willing to risk that kind of investment on somebody that could be a bust. I hope he’s not.”

Carey went to many of Winston’s games at neighboring Hueytown and his nephew was a childhood friend of the quarterback. He believes Winston deserves another chance at the “new life” Winston would later proclaim he’s embarking on.

“We’re all capable of making mistakes in life, but we should not hold that against him,” said Carey, while having lunch at a Hueytown barbecue restaurant. “We’re all human. We’re capable of doing things and learning from the mistakes we make in life.

“He’s going to make a difference in the game.”

___

AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL

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Seth looked comfortable in his new uniform, seamlessly fitting into the Warriors’ offensive and defensive system. He finished the night with an impressive 14 points, becoming one of the team’s top scorers for the game. Seth’s points came in a variety of ways – floaters, spot-up three-pointers, mid-range jumpers, and a handful of aggressive drives that kept the Oklahoma City Thunder defense on its heels.

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The Valkyries came to Oakland City Hall with a “Hoopbus.” Present were (from left to right): City Councilmembers Noel Gallo, Rebecca Kaplan, Zac Unger and Rowena Brown; Oakland Mayor-elect Barbara Lee, Valkyries President Jess Smith, a Valkyries team representative and Deputy Mayor LaNiece Jones. Photo courtesy Rebecca Kaplan’s office.

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Bill Russell and Brian McGhee in McClymonds High School Gym, 2011. Photo courtesy of Brian McGhee.

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Patterson was working at DeFremery Park when he met Russell. “I befriended him as a boy and during his years at University of San Francisco” said Patterson. “We stayed friends for the rest of his life.”

Said McClymonds Principal Darielle Davis, herself a McClymonds graduate, “We are excited to honor Bill Russell for his sports accolades and because he broke color barriers. He is part of our legacy, and legacy is really important at McClymonds.”

Brian McGhee, community schools manager at McClymonds and former football player at UC Berkeley, said that Russell meant a lot to him and others at the school. “He was a beacon of light and hope for West Oakland,” he said. “He did a lot for sports and for civil rights.”

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