The SEC, it just means more, right? Well, not exactly. The College Football Playoff semifinals are here, and the only team in the conference that is still standing is the Ole Miss Rebels, which is ironically very hilarious given that Lane Kiffin navigated over to LSU.
Florida State made light work of the powerhouse Alabama Crimson Tide in Week 1, where the Seminoles played them in the friendly confines of the newly-renovated Doak Campbell Stadium.
The storylines virtually wrote themselves, as quarterback Thomas Castellanos interviewed with On3's Pete Nakos in the offseason before the contest, where he had a conversation with the signal-caller, in which he mentioned that Alabama couldn't stop him and that Nick Saban couldn't save them anymore.
This was a situation where the fan base wished that Castellanos had kept his mouth shut during this period, since the Seminoles finished with a 2-10 record in 2024. However, the quarterback is a confident young man, and he was not on Florida State's roster during the previous year.
The Seminoles went on to beat them by a score of 31-17 in Tallahassee for the 2025 season opener. However, since Florida State has to play them in Tuscaloosa in 2026, it looks like Alabama will have a chip on its shoulder after being embarrassed against Indiana in the College Football Playoff game and wants to make a difference next year.
Should Alabama football fans be worried about Florida State?
However, that feat will be something to monitor as the Crimson Tide is losing players like Ty Simpson to the draft (obviously), but they also have Richard Young, Jaylen Mbakwe, Wilkin Formby, Joseph Ionata, Olaus Alenen, Qua Russaw, Noah Carter (who is visiting Florida State), and Cole Adams.
All in all, several players who were relied on as at least depth pieces are now in the portal for the Crimson Tide. They got ACC pieces in the transfer, such as North Carolina State running back Hollywood Smothers and Virginia Tech linebacker Caleb Woodson.
Florida State won't get Alabama in the opener, which is a bummer. The Seminoles would like to not give the group enough game experience to gel well with one another. Florida State should be aiming toward a win against an Alabama team that needs guys to step up.
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