The hurricane of off-field issues that has embroiled teams like Baltimore Ravens, the Minnesota Vikings and the FSU Seminoles this season has now rolled into Gainesville. And even weak hurricanes can create a big mess. Here comes the suck.

Knives will be out. Conclusions will be drawn. Rivalries will be exploited. And expect plenty of grinding of political axes.

At this point, we don’t know how bad the reported accusations against freshman Gator quarterback Treon Harris are. Here’s the latest from the Independent Florida Alligator. But in the end, it may not matter.

No matter what is true, no matter what happens, this issue will be a distraction hanging over the Gators for the rest of the season. According to reports, Harris’ lawyer is raising questions about whether he will be charged. “I would be surprised and disappointed if he ends up being prosecuted in this case,” Gainesville attorney Huntley Johnson said.

Sounds like a fight is brewing. Charges will be a mess. So will no charges.

The University acted promptly with a statement and indefinite suspension, which has drawn praise for the quick reaction. But the action also damns Harris, as the official action at least acknowledges that something happened. Given the recent spate of news on criminal behavior by football players, the University did what it had to do. But that’s all it takes to set the storm in motion. It can’t turn out to be “nothing” now.

Knives will be out. Conclusions will be drawn. Rivalries will be exploited. And expect plenty of grinding of political axes. But no matter what happens, this incident will follow Harris throughout this season, and perhaps the rest of his career. No matter what the truth, Harris will now be lumped into the group of misbehaving players.

Welcome to the mess Gators, I’m as unhappy to be here as you are. And you thought we’d be talking about LSU this week?