ESPN Makes Early Call on Florida State's 2026 Starting Quarterback

The Florida State Seminoles will have a new starting quarterback for the fourth consecutive year when the 2026 season rolls around. FSU hasn't found much stability at the position since Jordan Travis led the offense back in 2023.

Tommy Castellanos had his moments this past season, but fell off a cliff late in the year. That led the Seminoles to completely retool the room, bringing in four new faces.

Florida State landed former Auburn backup Ashton Daniels and former Lafayette starter Dean DeNobile out of the NCAA Transfer Portal, along with signing JUCO Player of the Year Malachi Marshall and four-star prep recruit Jaden O'Neal.

Those additions are coupled with the return of redshirt freshman Kevin Sperry, who earned high remarks from coaches and players during his first year in Tallahassee.

A quarterback competition is likely brewing over the next few months. Who will come out on top when Florida State takes the field in late August?

ESPN Projects FSU's 2026 Starting QB

Nov 29, 2025; Auburn, Alabama, USA; Auburn Tigers quarterback Ashton Daniels (12) during the second half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-Imagn Images | John Reed-Imagn Images

The most likely scenario is that the Seminoles begin the season with Daniels leading the offense. The veteran signal-caller has the most P4 experience in the room. At the same time, he's got a losing record as a starter and has thrown 24 touchdowns to 22 interceptions across four years at Stanford and Auburn.

ESPN believes that Daniels is the frontrunner for the job.

"After Thomas Castellanos was denied an additional year of eligibility, Florida State became active in the portal, hosting several quarterbacks, including Florida's DJ Lagway and UNLV's Anthony Colandrea, before gaining a commitment from Daniels, who will enter his fifth college season," ESPN's Max Olson wrote.

"Daniels has started games in each of the past three seasons -- one at Auburn, two at Stanford -- and comes to FSU with 4,783 career passing yards and 1,401 rushing yards, accounting for 35 touchdowns (24 pass, 11 rush)," Olson added. "He's just a 60.2% career passer and has struggled with interceptions at times, but Daniels' dual-threat ability was on display late in Auburn's 2025 season and could click in Gus Malzahn's offense."

Maybe Florida State can maximize Daniels' skillset. Maybe not.

Regardless, there's no doubt that Daniels was a discount option compared to the other quarterback transfers the Seminoles pursued. If he struggles, there shouldn't be much of a conversation about making a change.

In the event that Florida State does turn to someone outside of Daniels, Sperry and Marshall are the two names that come to mind. The Seminoles still believe Sperry could be the future of the program at the quarterback position. Marshall won't enroll until the summer, but he had a terrific year at the junior college level and has plenty of arm talent.

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