FSU President John Thrasher Meets with Football Team Amid Arrests, Controversy

After two Florida State Seminoles football players were charged with misdemeanor battery in separate incidents a few days apart, FSU President John Thrasher spoke to the team Monday to repeat the standards expected of it at the school.

Thrasher wrote an open letter, which read in part:    

"

In light of recent off-field incidents, I reiterated to our players that they simply cannot put themselves in situations that reflect poor behavior or cause harm to others. They must remember that playing football for FSU is a privilege, not a right. The actions of a few have the capacity to do serious damage to the reputation of our entire university. I told them their coaches, the Athletics administration and I will do all we can to support them and help them learn the values we expect them to uphold. But they will be held accountable for their actions.

"

On June 30, the Florida State Attorney's Office charged De'Andre Johnson after he struck a woman at a Tallahassee bar in June. Video of the punch was released to the media. Seminoles head coach Jimbo Fisher dismissed Johnson from the team on July 7.

Over the weekend, ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach reported FSU running back Dalvin Cook was also charged with the same crime after allegedly striking a woman outside a Tallahassee bar on June 23. Cook is also suspended from the team indefinitely.    

Public scrutiny of the Florida State program increased during Jameis Winston's sexual assault investigation in 2013 and the state attorney's subsequent decision not to charge him with a crime. The New York Times' Walt Bogdanich wrote an in-depth examination of the investigation carried out by university officials and local authorities.

Bogdanich and Mike McIntire then collaborated on a piece for the Times which further scrutinized how the Tallahassee Police Department handled potential crimes involving Seminoles football players.

"Recent events at Florida State University involving members of my football team have brought a lot of attention to the school and program," Fisher said last Friday in a statement, per Jim Henry for USA Today. "It is important to me that our fans and the public be aware that I do not tolerate the type of behavior that was captured on video and that was most recently alleged. We will do better. I will not tolerate anything less."