Jameis Winston didn't have a chance to play the Alabama Crimson Tide during his two years as starting quarterback at FSU. That wasn't his fault though, as Alabama chose to be a punchline on a special teams gaffe rather than face the 'Noles, but the Heisman winner from Hueytown, Alabama, still heard about them all the time.
That made the former Heisman winner and FSU national champion the perfect person to ask about Thomas Castellanos' comments on the Tide. Naturally, the number one overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft spoke out in support of his fellow Seminole.
"What did you expect? They want him to have that confidence," Winston said. "I want him to have that confidence. He should have that confidence. I know everybody loves Alabama, especially being from that state, so I'm excited to see that matchup."
Jameis Winston's career at Florida St:
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 7, 2015
• 26-1 record
• 7,964 Pass yds, 65 TD
• Heisman trophy
• National Championship pic.twitter.com/G50oJNUAFp
Castellanos has had to explain his comments probably a little more than he wanted. On Wednesday, the quarterback stood on business at ACC Media Days and last week simply said he wanted to instill some confidence in his team.
If anyone knows about talking that talk, it's Winston. Don't let his affable personality fool you, Winston was as competitive as they come during his days in Tallahassee. As a redshirt freshman at Clemson, Winston challenged his teammates to go into Death Valley and dominate. The Seminoles won 51-14 in arguably the greatest single FSU performance of the 21st century. It was like watching a hammer against a nail.
When FSU trailed Ole Miss by 15 points in the 2016 season opener, Winston gave an inspiring halftime speech with the famous words, 'we some dawgs, we ain't no puppies'. The Seminoles rallied for a 45-34 victory.
And yeah...he managed to eat a few 'Ws' too once he got into the league and, like any good businessman, Jameis has built a little bit of a gimmick around it.
The weirdness of Super Bowl Opening Night. One second, you’re listening to Patrick Mahomes. The next, Jameis Winston is tossing him a W cookie to eat. pic.twitter.com/d9QjhRQmL4
— Kyle Feldscher (@Kyle_Feldscher) February 4, 2025
But that's beside the point. Winston appears to be firmly in the Castellanos camp and applauds the faith he is showing in himself and his team. Maybe, just maybe, this thing might come together better than expected.