Florida State football is expected to have a bounce-back 2025 campaign after posting a 2-10 record last year. The Seminoles' fan base wants to stop with the offseason hype and see Florida State succeed at a high level.
Head football coach Mike Norvell is in one of the more pivotal years in his coaching tenure as the Seminoles need to win now. It all starts with the Alabama Crimson Tide coming to town on Saturday, August 30th, in the newly renovated Doak Campbell Stadium. All eyes will be on Florida State to see if they can compete with a program that has been highly successful over the past fifteen years.
I want to start by saying that I won't back down from these bold claims and hide under a rock like Greg McElroy did during the 2023 College Football Playoff Selection Show or when the Seminole fan on Twitter (X) did not eat the dog feces like he promised.
Here are my bold claims for Florida State football's 2025 season (don't criticize me too hard):
1. THERE WILL BE AN 800+ YARD RUSHER ON THE TEAM
Florida State's rushing attack was one of the worst in the country during the 2024 season, where it averaged a measly 58.3 rushing yards per game. The Seminoles did not do too much to its rotation at running back other than adding four-star signee Ousmane Kromah.
However, Florida State hired former UCF head football coach Gus Malzahn to be its offensive coordinator. The calling card for Malzahn in the scheme is his ability to run the football. The ironic part is that the coaching staff was high on the Seminoles to run the football last year, but it turned into a disaster.
It will help that Florida State added former Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos, who will be able to use his dual-threat ability to open up the running game (had 1,113 rushing yards in 2023). Whether it is Thomas Castellanos, Roydell Williams, Caziah Holmes, or Ousmane Kromah, someone will have over 800+ rushing yards this upcoming season.
2. SPECIAL TEAMS WON'T SEE MUCH OF A DROP-OFF
Florida State football did not have the 2024 season that it wanted, but the positive aspect was the special teams play of kicker Ryan Fitzgerald and punter Alex Mastromanno. Fans originally had question marks about Fitzgerald when he was inconsistent.
However, he had the biggest bounce back in school history, where he became an effective weapon. Florida State will be welcoming redshirt freshman kicker Jake Weinberg and redshirt junior punter Mac Chiumento to the starting roles.
Head football coach Mike Norvell mentioned during his introductory press conference that special teams will be the core foundation of a successful program. I expect that to continue with the succession of Weinberg and Chiumento.
3. DEFENSE WILL FORCE AT LEAST EIGHT INTERCEPTIONS
Florida State's coaching staff seems to be confident in the defensive back rotation. The secondary did lose veteran pieces such as Azareye'h Thomas, Kevin Knowles II, and Fentrell Cypress graduate/declare for the 2025 NFL Draft.
Defensive coordinator Tony White was hired this offseason to guide a defensive unit that only forced four interceptions last year. Coach White has emphasized that he wants this defense to be physical and aggressive. He has had success over the past four seasons at Nebraska and Syracuse, where they ranked in the top 25.
His defenses have always been good at stopping the run, so quarterbacks have been prone to forcing the issue by throwing the football. I expect secondary members such as Shyheim Brown, Earl Little Jr., Quindarrius Jones, Ja'Bril Rawls, Charles Lester III, and others to make an impact this year.