Special to the WJH TALLAHASSEE — Tommy Castellanos spent the summer talking boldly about what Florida State could do against No. 8 Alabama.
He called the Crimson Tide essentially a shell of their former selves, reminded everyone he “tore the ACC up by my damn self” at Boston College, and made it clear he believed the Seminoles were ready to shock college football.
Saturday in Tallahassee, he backed it all up. Florida State stunned Alabama 31-17 in the season’s first Top 10 upset, a statement win that instantly reshaped expectations for both programs.
Castellanos, in his Seminoles debut, completed just 9-of-14 passes for 152 yards and rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.
“It feels great,” said the Ware County alum after the game. “I relied on my teammates today, relied on my coaches. They put us in a position to go out there and execute and win.
“We came together today. We heard everything everybody said, we’d seen everything everybody said and we just added that fuel to the fire and we went out there and just played ball together. We went out there together and we executed. That’s it.”
After a dismal 2-10 season in 2024, FSU made an immediate statement. Alabama, a two-touchdown favorite on the road, looked overwhelmed at times in the trenches and struggled to contain Castellanos, who repeatedly made defenders miss.
By the final whistle, the Seminoles had not only ended the Crimson Tide’s 23-game season-opening win streak but also matched their entire FBS win total from last year.
“That’s one of the reasons why I came here, for moments like these and days like these,” Castellanos said on seeing the reaction from fans storming the field. “We got a long season ahead —just take it one week at a time and just keep climbing.”
With the same swagger he carried into the matchup, the quarterback doubled down in his postgame remarks —only this time, he had the scoreboard to back him up.
“I was watching something on ESPN,” Castellanos said, “and they were talking about the matchup and the battle up front. I just thought to myself, ‘We have Micah Pettus. We have Gunnar (Hansen). We have (Jacob) Rizy. We have Luke (Petitbon). We have Richie (Leonard IV).’ I could just go on and on.
“Our guys up front fought their tails off —they blocked and they fought all night long. Those guys kind of picked me up at times through this game when it wasn’t going our way. They did an unbelievable job against one of the best defenses in the country.” On renewed confidence in the program, he had a message for the Florida State fans.
“Today, I never played in an atmosphere like that,” said Castellanos. “The fans were in it the whole entire game. They were cheering, they were loud. I think Alabama had a couple of false start penalties, and that was because of the fans. They can’t hear, they can’t communicate, they can’t run a play and they can’t execute it the right way.
“I told my teammates when we got off the bus for the little walk we did I’ve never seen anything like it before. If you guys show up every single week and just be hostile and just be that way, it’s going to help us a lot. You guys made a big impact on the game. We love it.”
SPECIAL PHOTO FSU’s Tommy Castellanos runs in the open field gaining 78 yards against No. 8 Alabama’s defensive unit.
