"I just wasn’t repaid the right way" - FSU QB Thomas Castellanos calls out Bill O'Brien for Boston College breakup after Jeff Hafley's departure

Thomas Castellanos did not plan on playing for three different teams in three years. Transferring out of UCF after his freshman year in 2022, he had a hard year at Boston College in 2024. He’s now the new starting quarterback at Florida State.

When Boston College coach Jeff Hafley left for the NFL in January 2024, the quarterback did not find out from the team; he saw it on social media. At the time, he stayed at Boston College with new coach Bill O’Brien. Looking back, he wishes he hadn’t.

“I really wish I would have left when Hafley left, but I tried to give it another take,” Castellanos told On3 on Monday. “BC wasn’t the school for me. I wasn’t able to be myself, and I had to try to make myself be something I wasn’t.

"I just didn’t like it. Bill O’Brien and I butted heads early in the season. I got banged up a few games. We had a meeting, and it kind of blew up in my face. I did so much for that program, and I did everything that I could, and I just wasn’t repaid the right way.”

Thomas Castellanos. NCAA Football: Louisville at Boston College - Source: Imagn

Feeling “limited” in BC’s offense, Thomas Castellanos entered the transfer portal in November. His new home turned out to be Florida State, a program he called his “dream school.”

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Why did Thomas Castellanos choose Florida State?

When FSU coach Mike Norvell reached out to him, Thomas Castellanos leaned towards enrolling since Gus Malzahn, his former coach at UCF, was hired as FSU’s new offensive coordinator.

“He’s just giving me the keys and allowing me to just be me,” Castellanos said. “Just go out there and play football within the offense. That’s what I need. I don’t need a dog collar or a leash on me. I just need coach to say, ‘Just go be you. Go play.’ That’s what I was missing.”

FSU went 2-10 last year (1-7 in the Atlantic Coast Conference), the Seminoles’ worst season in 50 years. Castellanos said he and the team are both desperate to turn things around.

“I just liked how desperate they were," the quarterback added. "They could have gone out and gotten any quarterback in the country with NIL, and they chose me. … This could be it, right here. All they need is one season and one year. I feel like I have the skill set to be one of the best. Now I just have to turn this thing around for these guys, for this community, this fanbase and the staff.”

Thomas Castellanos arrived in Tallahassee with 20 career starts. He has an 11-10 record, 3,689 passing yards, 33 touchdowns, 19 interceptions and another 1,427 yards and 15 TDs on the ground. He became the first player in Boston College history to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in a single season.