Thomas Castellanos hasn’t held back since transferring from Boston College to Florida State in December. Whether it’s doubling down on his trash talk toward Alabama, the Seminoles’ Week 1 opponent, or challenging the narrative around his departure from Chestnut Hill, the quarterback has been rather outspoken. At ACC Media Days this week, Castellanos defended his decision to leave BC and pushed back on the narrative that he quit. Boston College coach Bill O’Brien, meanwhile, offered his own perspective.
“Tommy can think what he wants,” O’Brien told ESPN’s David Hale. “We supported the hell out of Tommy. We coached Tommy, we taught Tommy. I wish him the best. We went with Grayson [James]. We told him, ‘The team needs you, come back and compete and win your job back.’ It’s called life — L-I-F-E. Deal with adversity. He’s fine. He’s the starting QB at Florida State. It worked out well. I wish him the best.”
Castellanos left Boston College in last November after losing the starting job to Grayson James, who started five games and came off the bench against Syracuse on Nov. 9 when Castellanos was injured. Castellanos had started 20 career games for the Eagles across two years — one season under Jeff Hafley and then under O’Brien in 2024. He said the narrative that he quit on his team, or was simply benched, isn’t true.
“Whatever [O’Brien] said or is out there — ‘he got benched’ or ‘he quit’ — that’s not true,” Castellanos told ESPN. “Only the people in that room know what went down, legally and personally, know the true story.”
How Thomas Castellanos navigated Boston College benching to become Florida State’s answer at QB
Will Backus
O’Brien took over as coach at Boston College in February 2024 after Castellanos had completed his sophomore season. Despite O’Brien’s proven track record of coaching quarterbacks — from guiding Tom Brady to an NFL MVP season with the Patriots in 2010 to mentoring Bryce Young during his Heisman Trophy campaign at Alabama in 2021 — Castellanos struggled to find success in the new system.
O’Brien is known for more of a pro-style system and the 5-foot-11 Castellanos, known for his running ability, didn’t quite mesh. Once the season ended, Castellanos hit the transfer portal and opted for a fresh start at Florida State. At FSU, he’ll play for new Seminoles offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, the coach who recruited Castellanos to UCF before he went to BC.
Boston College, which is expected to start either James or Alabama transfer Dylan Lonergan, does not face Florida State this season.
