Friday will mark the third time in three seasons that Virginia matches up against play-making signal-caller Tommy Castellanos.
And entering the 7 p.m. bout between the host Hoos (3-1, 1-0 ACC) and No. 8 Florida State (3-0, 0-0 ACC), they feel Castellanos’ fit with the Seminoles has him performing at his best.
“He looks just really confident, really comfortable,” Cavaliers coach Tony Elliott said. “He knows where to go with the ball, and he’s decisive on when he needs to pull it down and run it. And then when he’s in space, I mean, he just looks like he’s playing a video game.”
Castellanos, the 5-foot-11, quick-footed quarterback, always possessed those traits.
But in his move to Florida State from Boston College, he reunited with Gus Malzahn, who is in his first year as the Seminoles’ offensive coordinator after spending the four previous years as Central Florida’s coach.
It was at UCF that Malzahn initially recruited Castellanos and Castellanos began his career. And at ACC media days this past July, the veteran QB said he felt like his skills were similar to other quarterbacks Malzahn previously found success with.
“I just want to be one of those guys in his offense that puts up a lot of points and moves fast, plays fast-paced and score points,” Castellanos said then about why he was so eager to team up with Malzahn again. “He creates a lot of explosive plays and puts points up on the board.”
So far, the pair is delivering for Florida State.
Castellanos threw for 152 yards and rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown to help the Seminoles upset Alabama in Week 1. On their first scoring drive of the game, Castellanos launched a 40-yard completion to wide receiver Squirrel White only to hustle the offense back to the line of scrimmage, snap the ball rapidly and take off for a 9-yard rushing touchdown in which Castellanos showed off his shiftiness to get in the end zone.
On the season, Castellanos’ 71.1% completion rate is a career-best. He’s thrown for 594 yards and three touchdowns and he’s rushed for 139 yards and three scores.
“Super athletic quarterback,” UVa defensive coordinator John Rudzinski said. “He’s a young man that does a tremendous job throwing the football and then does a tremendous job being a very, very elusive and dynamic athlete in space as a ball-carrier as well. My goodness, he’s a tough one.”
Rudzinski and that defense have previously played well against Castellanos when he was serving as Boston College’s quarterback.
Last year in a win for UVa, the Cavaliers sacked him three times, he had -9 rushing yards, threw a pair of interceptions and also fumbled. In 2023, Castellanos led Boston College to a come-from-behind victory while he rushed for 78 yards and threw for 183 with two touchdowns. He threw two interceptions in the first quarter, though.
What’s tricky for Rudzinski and his unit is determining how much of what the Cavaliers did against Castellanos the last two years is still useful and can apply to the game plan for Friday night.
“Playing defense and looking at him, you can pick up on tendencies that he does or just find ways we can get him out of his game,” Cavaliers seventh-year safety Antonio Clary said. “But it’s a new offense. He has a new coordinator and they’re a completely different offense with him in the game as well.
“He’s a completely different quarterback, so we have to understand what we did well against him last year,” Clary continued, “and then implement it into what they do if we’re going to be able to stop him.”
Linebacker Kam Robinson, Clary and linebacker James Jackson were the top three tacklers against Boston College in 2024, and both Robinson and Jackson had sacks of Castellanos.
“Having the opportunity to go against the young man, you hope that you can pull a few of the lessons you’ve learned,” Rudzinski said, “but at the same time, it’s tough to simulate an athlete like that at quarterback.”
Greg Madia
gmadia@dailyprogress.com
@GregMadia on X
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Greg Madia
UVa Sports Reporter
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