New questions raised about Jameis Winston incidents

Heisman winning quarterback Jameis Winston had another strong game today as his number one-ranked Florida State Seminoles beat Syracuse 38-20.

But amid some new accusations about how Florida State handled a number of accusations against him, including rape, there is a growing chorus of critics questioning if he should be playing at all.

It's days like today that won Winston a Heisman -- passing 317 yards and throwing three touchdowns against Syracuse.

But off the field, a string of reports are raising new questions about his behavior and whether Florida State went too far in protecting its star quarterback.

Winston is accused of sexually assaulting a woman in December 2012. Police never charged him. Neither did State's Attorney, Willie Meggs.

"We've carefully examined all the evidence in this case and have concluded that no charges will be filed," Meggs said in December.

But Friday night, The New York Times and Fox Sports released separate stories claiming the local police and the university interfered and stalled the investigation.

The university released a lengthy defense of the slow pace of its inquiry, its first public comments on the case.

"We did not want you to confuse our silence with idleness, a lack of caring or, as some have alleged, an institutional conspiracy to protect a star athlete," the university's statement said.

FSU is obligated to investigate sexual assault under Title IX, and the school says it initiated a probe last November but suspended it, citing a lack of evidence. The Department of Education launched a federal investigation into the university in April, and the university reopened the Winston investigation four months later.

On Friday, Florida State informed Winston that he will face a disciplinary hearing into the 2012 assault.

In the meantime, the quarterback has had a troubled year.

In April, he was caught on camera stealing crab legs from a Tallahassee supermarket.

And in September, he was suspended for a game after yelling obscenities in front of other students.

"I'm not a mean person, but in that situation it was a selfish act," he said at a news conference. "And that's not, that's not how you do things."