Florida State has landed what appears to be its new signal caller for the 2025 season after former Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos committed to the Seminoles last week. Castellanos started his career with Gus Malzahn at UCF where he signed out of high school, so it’s fitting that he will finish it with Malzahn back in the state of Florida.
This pickup doesn’t come without its controversy as Castellanos is far from a proven quarterback. However, he does fit Malzahn’s offensive scheme and I think he can do what FSU needs him to with the right pieces around him. Malzahn mentioned in his introductory press conference that they want to run the ball downhill and stretch the field vertically through the passing game. Obviously, rebuilding the offensive line will be the key factor in having any offensive success next season. However, adding in a dynamic runner like Castellanos will go a long way in helping them achieve those goals.
When we look at how quarterbacks contributed to the running game in a Gus Malzahn offense, this is where the addition starts to make sense. Dating back to 2013, Malzahn’s first year as a head coach, quarterbacks have averaged 567 yards and 7 touchdowns per season. In his two most successful seasons (2010 & 2013), the quarterbacks rushed for over 1,100 yards and double-digit touchdowns.
In 2022, UCF quarterback John Rhys Plumlee was second among all FBS quarterbacks in rush yards with 982 and he added 12 touchdowns on the ground. Now Malzahn will have Castellanos at the helm, who in 2023, was second among all FBS quarterbacks in rush yards with 1,113 and added 13 touchdowns on the ground. Castellanos’ rushing stats took a hit in 2024 primarily because of the system he was in under new head coach Bill O’Brien. However, if FSU can get the rushing production from 2023 combined with the improved passing from 2024, they might have something here.
After all, FSU has not had a 1,000-yard rusher at any position since Cam Akers last crossed the mark in 2017 as a running back. We all wanted Jordan Travis to run the ball more and saw how it helped the offense when he did. We are about to get a heavy dose of just that with Castellanos and it’s not just scrambles either. Most of his rushing success in 2023 came on designed runs, but the ability to move the pocket and create plays with his legs will be a key component for this offense.
Obviously, a quarterback must do more than run the ball. Castellanos may have run the ball successfully in 2023, but his passing left plenty of room for improvement. While his rushing stats may have taken a dip in 2024, his passing did improve. Castellanos saw his completion percentage rise by 4.5%, yards per attempt climbed by 1.7, and his touchdown-to-interception ratio also improved (15/14 vs. 18/5). He only played in 8 games in 2024, 5 fewer than in 2023, but had the same about of games with over 200 passing yards and one more game with a 60+ completion percentage.
Make no mistake, Malzahn’s offense is built off being dominant in the running game, but Castellanos will be asked to throw the ball. During Malzahn’s time at UCF, the Knights averaged just one fewer passing attempt per game than FSU has in the five years under Mike Norvell.
One area I want to highlight is Castellanos’ ability to throw the ball vertically, that is what Gus wants to do with this offense. This is one area that Castellanos improved in 2024. I’m not saying he’s perfect or even on the level of Jordan Travis, but for comparison’s sake, let’s use Jordan’s 2023 season as the benchmark being it led FSU to an undefeated record prior to his injury.
On passes of 20+ yards, Jordan had a completion percentage of 31% with 591 yards (10.2 YPA), 3 touchdowns and no interceptions. Last season, Castellanos had a completion percentage of 39.4% on throws over 20 yards with 504 yards (15.3 YPA) and 6 touchdowns with 3 interceptions. Of course, there is room to improve on the interceptions, but those numbers aren’t bad at all, especially considering he was not throwing to guys like Johnny Wilson and Keon Coleman. In fact, Castellanos had the second-highest percentage of throws over 20 yards last season, so he pushes the ball downfield quite often.
To wrap this up, my main concern is the durability of a 5-foot-9, 200-pound quarterback who will likely be asked to run the ball upwards of 100 times next season. He has some turnover issues to correct with 7 fumbles in each of the past two seasons. He cut down on his interceptions but still threw 5 of them in 8 games, so we can’t be sure where that number would have ended up with a full slate of games.
The main positives are you get a guy who fits the new offense being brought to Tallahassee by Gus Malzahn. Castellanos was scouted by and played for Malzahn at UCF, so we must trust that Gus has evaluated him extensively and knows who he is as a player and a person. His mobility should provide a major boost to a team that has had offensive line troubles and was one of the worst running teams in the country last year. He has experience with 20 starts at the Power 4 level and is familiar with the offense he’s about to lead.
Many of us weren’t sure about this addition when the news dropped and I’m by no means calling for him to win the Heisman, however, I think FSU can find success with Castellanos at quarterback. The key will be getting the rushing production from 2023 with the improved passing numbers of 2024. If you combine the two stat lines, you have basically recreated Nick Marshall’s 2013 season at Auburn when he led Malzahn’s team to the national championship game. Nothing is guaranteed in college football, but it will be fun to watch him gash a defense that isn’t ours for a change. Thanks for reading and Go Noles!
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