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Wednesday is often called over the hump day, a chance to start celebrating the coming weekend. The drinking age in Florida is 21, but 18 year old’s are allowed in bars. It’s gotten three FSU football players in hot water, but as Mike Vasilinda tells us, keeping underage people out of bars has always been a heavy lift for lawmakers.

Jameis Winston, Dalvin Cook, and D’Andre Johnson,  were all investigated after allegations from women in bars. All three players were 19 at the time.

Winston was accused of raping a co-ed. Cook and Johnson were accused of punching women. There is video of only one of the incidents…Johnson’s punch…but before the punch a band on his arm suggests he is old enough to drink. State Attorney Willie Meggs, who has been involved in all three cases, questions the wisdom of being underage in a bar.

“It makes absolutely no sense to me, so it would strike me they ought not be allowed in the place” says the retiring State Attorney.

Cook was acquitted by a jury and is back on the team. The police report shows a 19 year old witness was so intoxicated, police had trouble understanding her. In court, Cook’s accuser, Madison Geohegan, was asked about her friends drinking.

They didn’t ID us.”

Q:They didn’t ID?”

“No” she said under oath.

It’s been more than 25 years since lawmakers looked at trying to keep everyone under 21 out of a bar. Just about every proprietor in the state complained, and the idea died a very quick death.

Dave Ericks owns one of the state Capitol’s best known watering holes.  “And it’s part o the experience. You’re, lets say, dating a 21 year old, and you are 19 or 20 and you couldn’t go somewhere with them, it just wasn’t right” says Ericks.

And Ericks says there are heavy penalties for serving underage drinkers. Bars could lose their license.

In a statement today, the state says it has made more than 100,000 visits to places that sell alcohol, arresting 1843 people for selling to minors over the last three years.