I've already gone on record to say that FSU needs to embrace Thomas Castellanos' comments about Alabama that the quarterback made last month.
Was it the brightest thing to say? Probably not. Did it put a major target on Castellanos' chest? Absolutely. Does this go against pretty much everything Mike Norvell is about? Definitely.
But Castellanos said it and the program has to believe his words. If he isn't treating Alabama like the 900-pound dinosaur they've been over the past 20 years, why should the rest of the team?
Earlier this week, Castellanos got into some friendly banter with Alabama wide receiver Isiah Horton about those comments during a workout and the exchange was caught on camera.
Thomas Castellanos chats with Bama WR Isiah Horton about his confidence ahead of FSU-Alabama season opener.
— Logan B. Robinson (@LogansTwitty) July 16, 2025
“If you ever watch any interview, I don’t ever talk like that. But like, them boys are coming off 2-10 — I just wanted to instill some confidence.”
“I’m tryna get my… pic.twitter.com/5X1AXS1WJ8
Castellanos closes the exchange by saying, "I'm trying to go out with a bang."
I get where Castellanos is coming from to an extent. He's walking into a program that went 2-10 last year. There are questions in the FSU locker room that probably have never existed before. Sure, the brand is still strong, but who are the Seminoles going to be on the field?
Will Castellanos' confidence help FSU flip the script on Bama?
August 30th will be the third time FSU has played Alabama in this century. The 2007 game in Jacksonville was magical. A record crowd saw Xavier Lee's brightest moment as a Seminole when he completed a 70-yard touchdown to De'Cody Fagg that helped FSU earn a 21-14 win over the Crimson Tide in Nick Saban's first season.
Xavier Lee leads Florida State to a 21-14 victory over Nick Saban and Alabama in 2007. #FSU #FSUplays pic.twitter.com/ROFnAkvqSO
— FSU Plays Daily (@FSUplays) May 25, 2023
Then there was the 2017 game. No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 3 FSU in Atlanta. It was supposed to be the biggest opening week game in the history of college football. Jimbo Fisher felt like he had his best FSU team since 2013 and Alabama was still fuming after losing the championship game to Clemson.
And then Deondre Francois got injured and FSU football was never the same. By late November, Jimbo Fisher was off to Texas A&M and FSU had to win four straight games at the end of the season to finish 7-6.
In many ways, that game feels like the day FSU football died. We thought Mike Norvell revived it in 2022 and 2023, but after last season no one knows what to think.
If Castellanos can back up his words on August 30, it might be what FSU football needs to finally break out of this malaise. That would be the best way to go out with a bang.