FSU football's Tommy Castellanos played through injury in Pittsburgh defeat

Florida State has one of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the country in Tommy Castellanos. The senior signal-caller is at his best when he's able to mix in his athleticism alongside his arm.

Castellanos has created plenty of big plays and moments for the Seminoles during the first half of the 2025 season. The win over Alabama may feel like it was a year ago at this point, but it still happened.

Over the last three weeks, Castellanos hasn't truly looked like himself. He suffered a lower-body injury in the victory against Kent State. In the ensuing losses to Virginia, Miami, and Pittsburgh, Castellanos has seemed more hesitant - thinking, instead of acting - and that has led to mistakes.

There have also been times in the last two games where Castellanos was visibly limping. He's not 100% and offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn confirmed as much on Sunday.

Gus Malzahn Says Tommy Castellanos Is Playing Through Injury

In his weekly press conference with the local media, Malzahn noted that Castellanos suffered an injury on the first offensive play of the game against Pittsburgh.

Facing a 1st and 15 following an illegal snap penalty, Castellanos faked a throw to the flat and kept the ball himself on a quarterback draw. He was brought down by two defenders and didn't show any signs of being hampered at the time.

Castellanos did exit the game briefly later in the first half but returned after Florida State called a timeout.

"The first drive, Tommy ended up getting banged up the first play," Malzahn said on Sunday. "He showed a lot of toughness the rest of the game and he has done that all year."

Malzahn went on to reveal that the Seminoles have limited Castellanos in practice leading up to games. It was just bad luck for him to suffer an injury so early in the contest.

The missing playmakers across the offense were also evident. Wide receiver Duce Robinson went down in the first half, adding insult to injury as FSU was already missing wide receiver Squirrel White, wide receiver Jayvan Boggs, tight end Randy Pittman Jr., offensive tackle Micah Pettus, and running back Roydell Williams, among others.

"Tommy is such a tough guy. He's been playing, he hasn't been 100%, I think everybody knows that," Malzahn said. "I mean, we've had to be very smart with him in practice and all that, and he gets hurt the very first play of the game. He's a tough guy, and he battles. He's a great competitor. So yeah, it's tough, but that's part of playing quarterback."

Castellanos has been listed as probable on all three of Florida State's availability reports for ACC games. Teams aren't required to specify the nature of injuries.

The veteran quarterback isn't making any excuses for himself. When asked if he's running less due to injury, Castellanos highlighted the weapons around him and the need to get them the ball.

"I'm good. Obviously, from fall camp to now, you're never going to be 100%," Castellanos said after FSU's loss to Pittsburgh. "It's just football. I'm good enough to do whatever that I need to do to win, to do for the team. I'm a quarterback. I'm focused on playing quarterback and getting the ball to my guys."

"If I have the opportunity to run, then I'll run, but right now I got too many weapons to try and be running," Castellanos continued. "I'm trying to get the ball to the playmakers and get it in their hands so they can go make plays for me."

On the season, Castellanos has completed 86/138 passes for 1,365 yards with nine touchdowns to five interceptions. He's added 65 rushes for 286 yards and four more scores.

Florida State returns to action in a road game against Stanford on Saturday, October 18. Kickoff is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Stick with NoleGameday for more FREE coverage of Florida State Football throughout the 2025 season

Follow NoleGameday on and Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok

More Florida State News

Former FSU football star Jordan Travis has strong words on Mike Norvell

FSU football's struggles lead to exit from AP Top 25 Poll

Mike Norvell sounds off after FSU football's loss to Pittsburgh: 'Still too many mistakes'

Florida State football huge betting favorite in ACC trip to Stanford Cardinal