Tommy Castellanos’ personality and charisma is one that has helped him build relationships and gain respect with Florida State players. He has also shown to be an encouraging voice when needed, too.
Quarterbacks coach Tony Tokarz has seen the chemistry building among the Seminoles. But he’s also seen a needed competitive fire from Castellanos.
“Just reflecting on the last two days. Yesterday, it's the first day of camp. There's that nervous energy. I don't want to call it anxiety. That nervous energy and there’s times, especially later in practice, I felt like we had some highs in practice, some lows in practice, just some inconsistent moments,” Tokarz said. “And so we challenged our team: ‘Just what's your response going to be tomorrow?’
“And I think that Tommy was at the forefront of that charge today, just bringing that energy, bringing that excitement to the offense, because all those other things that happen outside the lines directly impact what happens when you're on that field."
Tokarz admitted it wasn’t a “flashy football answer” to a writer’s question after Thursday’s practice. Maybe it’s not flashy, but what Castellanos did was show the type of leadership and accountability early in preseason camp, a time when the Seminoles continue to build bonds that will last through a football season.
Castellanos’ personality matches how dynamic of an athlete he is, Tokarz said. While some of his comments about Alabama have to some been viewed as too strong — and defensive lineman Tim Keenan III responded by saying “disrespect will be addressed” — Castellanos’ comments, he insists, were never meant to be disrespectful. His comments have been embraced around the locker room as a positive and helped build bonds.
How does that bond translate between the lines on the field? Castellanos has also been assertive in starting conversations with FSU’s skill position players about various plays as they learn the scheme together.
“A more experienced player, an older guy, a guy that's seen a lot of football in different types of systems, I think he naturally has the confidence to have those conversations, to help build that chemistry with his teammates, regardless of what that position is,” Tokarz said.
Castellanos has experience in Gus Malzahn’s offense dating back to UCF in 2022. While he has immersed himself in the playbook in the last eight months, Tokarz sees a quarterback who wants to nail down the finer points.
“To his credit, he's not afraid to ask the question, there's a lot of older guys where it's just kind of the expectation, ‘Oh, you've played this many snaps. You should know that by now.’ He's not afraid to say, ‘Hey, Coach, this is a little cloudy in my mind. Can we clean this up?’ And so I think it comes down to just his relationship, how natural that is with the players, with his teammates, with his coaches,” Tokarz said.
Darrell Jackson named to All-ACC preseason team
Florida State redshirt senior defensive tackle Darrell Jackson Jr. was named to the preseason All-ACC team Thursday.
Jackson recorded 32 tackles, four tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks in 2024, his first full season playing at FSU. He had a season-best five tackles against North Carolina and a career-best two sacks and a forced fumble vs. Miami.
Coming up
FSU will practice again Friday afternoon. The Seminoles will be off on Saturday and return to the field Sunday morning.
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