The Florida special prosecutor announced yesterday that there is not enough evidence to charge Florida State quarterback (and likely Heisman Trophy winner) Jameis Winston with rape, despite the fact that the woman reported it to police immediately after their sexual contact. (The Tallahassee Police Department's inaction for 11 months after the victim's complaint and hospital rape kit examination makes it effectively impossible to prosecute.)
Will there be anti-rape demonstrators at the Pasadena game parking lot and access roads on Monday, January 6, 2014 for the game, for its audience of 26+ million viewers, mostly male and many impressionable young men?
Quarterback Jameis Winston figures to cash in on his fame after the game and reap tens of millions of dollars of endorsement contracts for TV and print ads.
Perhaps 10,000 or 250,000 demonstrators at the stadium, the parking lot, clogging up the access roads, etc. carrying signs that say "No Means No" could signal to the national media broadcast audience, including the millions of impressionable male teens watching on TV, to the NCAA, to the Florida State University administration and its football program that people need to be held to a higher standard than "there's not enough evidence to convict beyond a reasonable doubt".
The BCS national college football championship game is on Monday, January 6, 2014 at 8:30pm Eastern Time (5:30pm local time) in Pasadena, California at the Rose Bowl Stadium.
The game could be a teaching moment for "good" or a teaching moment for a bad example and role model, depending on what happens on January 6.
If Florida State wins the game and the national championship, it could also present an awkward moment for our President - who will host the traditional congratulatory visit to the White House some weeks or months afterwards.