It’s inarguable that the Florida State football team has a much better offense than last season.
In fact, it’s kind of hard to fathom how much progress was made on that side of the ball over one year’s
time.
How can the same offense that ranked 132nd out of 134 FBS teams in yards per play (4.42) and 131st in scoring offense (15.4 points per game) in 2024 now be among the best statistical offenses in the country this season?
Florida State enters Saturday’s game at Clemson (7 p.m. on ACC Network) leading the nation in yards per game (510.5), seventh in scoring offense (40.0) and tied with Ohio State for 10th in yards per play (7.11).
Think about that, the Seminoles are averaging the same yards per play as the top-ranked defending champions who have the best receiver in college football in Jeremiah Smith (apologies for the PTSD trigger) and a Heisman-contending quarterback in Julian Sayin.
Now, one could point out that those FSU numbers are a bit boosted by the team’s demolitions of overmatched early-season opponents East Texas A&M and Kent State. That is at least marginally correct. Against FBS opponents, Florida State ranks 15th in yards per play (6.67) and 16th in points per game (34.7). Against Power Four competition, those ranks fall to 26th (6.07 ypp) and 30th (29.5 ppg).
Even still, that is a remarkable improvement over a one-season span and it’s wrong to call Florida State’s 2025 offense anything less than good.
The Seminoles have been held below 400 yards just once (vs Alabama, 382 on 6.06 ypp), while averaging less than five yards per play in only the Miami game (4.87).
For reference, the 2023 FSU offense was held below 400 yards six times that season, including three times before Jordan Travis went down with his injury.
So how is this offense a part of a team that is 4-4 on the season? What areas have held the offense back?
It’s certainly not the big plays. The Seminoles are tied for the national lead in plays of both 30-plus yards (33) and 40-plus yards (18).
But this offense has also proven it can be methodical. It may hit a lot of big plays, but it doesn’t rely on them entirely, with 11 touchdown drives of 10-plus plays this season.
Third-down conversions also aren’t the problem (FSU ranks sixth nationally, converting them at a 53.2% clip), nor is the red zone, where FSU ranks 17th in touchdown percentage (74.4%).
No doubt the ground game has fallen off a bit both as the schedule got harder and since Tommy Castellanos has been less athletic after injuring his foot/ankle against Kent State.
After rushing for 230-plus yards in each of their first four games, the Seminoles have surpassed 150 rushing yards just once in the last four (170 vs. Pittsburgh). Castellanos is still second on the team in rushing yards (328) behind Gavin Sawchuk, but has just 111 yards on 48 carries (2.31 per carry) over the last four after he averaged 5.29 yards per carry over the first four games.
Against Power Four opponents, Florida State ranks 43rd in yards per carry (4.15).
Consistency in the passing game has also been an occasional thorn. Castellanos leads the nation in yards per attempt (10.3) thanks to his deep-ball accuracy and the ability of receivers like Duce Robinson and Micahi Danzy, who are the top two ACC receivers — and two of the top five nationally — in yards per reception with a combined 1,192 receiving yards and six touchdowns.
The FSU quarterback is also 11th in the ACC out of 15 eligible QBs in completion percentage (61.5%), as it’s felt like his intermediate passing game hasn’t been the most consistent. Maybe his 12-of-16 passing performance (75%) vs. Wake Forest can be a turning point after he completed less than 60% in three of his prior four games.
It bears mentioning, because of his high yards-per-attempt numbers, that Castellanos does rank second in the ACC in passer rating (160.86) behind only Duke’s Darian Mensah.
The Clemson game this weekend presents an interesting opportunity. On paper, it should be the most talented defense the Seminoles have faced since at least the Miami game and potentially all season.
In reality, though, the Tigers are eighth in the ACC in yards per game allowed (350.3), eighth in yards per carry allowed (3.48) and 10th in points per game allowed (24.0). Duke put up 439 yards and 46 points in Clemson in last week’s win.
Can the Tigers, who need to go 3-1 the rest of the way to preserve their 20-year bowl streak, find any improvement this weekend? Or will it be another big day for the Florida State offense and a move to the brink of bowl eligibility?
