After receiving a fifth year of eligibility, former Florida State quarterback Thomas Castellanos has entered the NCAA transfer portal, sources tell CBS Sports' Matt Zenitz.
On Friday, a Kentucky judge granted a temporary injunction in an eligibility lawsuit that included Castellanos and former Missouri basketball standout Mark Mitchell. Because Castellanos now has an injunction, he will not be affected by the new ruling in the Colorado lawsuit that took away eligibility for qualified athletes in the class of 2022.
A three-star recruit out of Georgia, Castellanos signed with UCF as a member of the 2022 recruiting class. The following season, Castellanos transferred to Boston College, where he started across two seasons before jumping to Florida State as a senior in 2025.
Last year, Castellanos completed 58.3% of his passes for 2,760 yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions while also rushing for 557 yards and nine touchdowns. While Castellanos' lone season with the Seminoles was turbulent, he led the team to an upset of No. 8 Alabama in Week 1.
Throughout his college career, Castellanos has provided dynamic playmaking with his legs, and he even rushed for 1,113 yards as a sophomore at Boston College. Despite missing spring practice and most of fall camp, Castellanos has already reportedly generated significant interest from at least one Power Four team.
Where will Castellanos land?
Texas Tech has emerged as the most likely landing spot for Castellanos as he looks to continue his college career, according to multiple reports. Given how the quarterback situation has evolved in Lubbock throughout the offseason, landing with the Red Raiders makes plenty of sense for Castellanos.
Texas Tech paid up to land Cincinnati transfer Brendan Sorsby out of the transfer portal, but due to fallout from a gambling scandal, Sorsby will no longer play for the Red Raiders this fall. Will Hammond — very talented in his own right — is now the starter, but he's coming off a torn ACL he suffered last October.
While the Red Raiders are still fine at the top of the quarterback depth chart, the loss of Sorsby made them much shallower. Sophomore Lloyd Jones III is currently set to back up Hammond, but he's attempted just five passes at the college level. Castellanos would give Texas Tech more insurance at the most important position on the field.
That's important because the rest of the Texas Tech roster looks to be a legitimate College Football Playoff threat. The Red Raiders brought in 22 players via the portal, and that class ranked No. 6 nationally, according to 247Sports. Castellanos would help ensure that those title hopes won't be immediately derailed if Hammond is unable to play.
