Florida State was a program in desperate need of a monumental victory and on Saturday, the Seminoles delivered in major fashion.
FSU dragged the No. 8-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide down Route 90 going 90, playing fully complementary football as each position group executed and excelled from start to finish.
While every single part of this team deserves credit, three players* stood out to me, and I hope you’ll see why.
*two players and one position group, technically, but who’s counting?
1. Quarterback Tommy Castellanos
After Castellanos
had said, “I dreamed of playing against Alabama. They don’t have Nick Saban to save them. I just don’t see them stopping me,” Seminoles fans were rightly concerned that this would backfire spectacularly. After all, this program was coming off a 2-10 season.
9/14, 152 passing yards, 78 rushing yards, and 1 rushing touchdown aren’t pop-off-the-screen numbers, but Castellanos made plays that won the game.
His working with offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn definitely helped in this regard, as the Seminoles seemed to love the rushing attack. They had 236 rush yards against a historically stingy Alabama defense. Don’t doubt Castellanos’ passing game either, as he made several deep throws to Squirrel White and Jaylin Lucas. An early 45-yard reception by the aforementioned White, who transferred in from the Tennessee Volunteers, is no stranger to playing Alabama. Make no mistake, Castellanos has transformed this program and brought new energy to it that was desperately needed.
2. The entire running back room
How are you supposed to pick one player from a position group where everybody ate?
Caziah Holmes had a 4-yard rushing touchdown to put the score up 24-7. Gavin Sawchuk had a 14-yarder to put the icing on the cake at 31-17. Roydell Williams came up clutch on a fourth-down conversion on that same drive. Ousmane Kromah lived up to the hype on each of his touches, showcasing a physicality not seen in Tallahassee since perhaps James Wilder Jr. and Karlos Williams. All of them deserve credit — even Micahi Danzy, who started off his career at FSU as a back but made the switch to receiver this offseason, had a 32-yard rushing touchdown, and he averaged 18.7 yards per carry. It is clear that the offensive mindset has changed significantly from years past, and that was on display from the jump from an offensive line unit that set the tone in the trenches.
3. Defensive back Earl Little Jr.
Earl Little was everywhere in this game. 9 total tackles, 1 TFL, he was incredible. He had a pass breakup to prevent a touchdown. An absolute clinic of a performance from the former Alabama Crimson Tide. This just felt like his moment.
Head Coach Mike Norvell said, “Earl Little was a monster out there today,” in his post-game press conference. Perhaps the understatement of the year, so far.
When asked about his own performance, Little said: “Just knowing that I came from there, everything I had to do over there, everything that happened to me over there, it added fuel to my fire. I feel like we made a tremendous step as a team and as a defense. We still have more room to improve, but we’re gonna celebrate this victory.”
What do you think? Who stood out to you? Let me know in the comments.
