While Florida State did not bring its best to Dublin, we certainly did.
Our bets had a winning week in Ireland as we cashed in two out of three and started the season off on the right foot.
However, each game presents new challenges, and unpacking the Boston College Eagles will be difficult. With a new coach at the helm in Bill O’Brien and a defensive coordinator who has been out of college football for 30 years, the Eagles are unpredictable. But after scouting the side and re-watching the tape, I feel confident we can roll the momentum into week two.
Three picks. Three winners.
Here we go.
All lines are presented by DraftKings — as always, gamble at your own risk.
Florida State vs. Georgia Tech: 3 key bets
1. DJ Uiagalelei: Over/Under 225 Passing Yards
During every press conference leading up to Boston College, Mike Norvell promised his team would be more explosive on Monday night. If the coach stays true to his word, his quarterback could be in for a monster day.
While Uiagalelei did not get the full menu of plays in the first half, his fourth-quarter touchdown drive, during which he threw for 82 yards on his way to the end zone, should give the entire passing offense a boost heading into the contest against Boston College. The transfer ended Saturday with a pedestrian 193 yards, but he still had 27 pass attempts. With Florida State wanting to stay balanced, Uiagalelei will receive ample opportunity to sling the rock down the field. He also improved the chemistry with his receivers by playing in the first game; only a small amount of added experience could make a difference.
What will not be seasoned is the BC defensive secondary. The Eagles lost six players from a defensive backfield that finished 26th in the country in passing yards allowed (FSU finished 11th), including third-round pick Elijah Jones, who went to the Arizona Cardinals. Throw in that defensive coordinator Tim Lewis will stack the box to stop the run, and the Seminole WRs may be left on an island for most of the evening.
The pick: Over
2. Thomas Castellanos: Over/ Under 58 Rushing Yards
58 is a large number to swallow, but this still could be the best bet of the day.
Haynes King torched the Seminoles on the ground last week with his legs as he decisively navigated blockers and reached the edge of the defense. He ended with just one pass attempt more (16) than his rushing attempts (15) because he easily carved up Adam Fuller’s unit. King finished the game with 54 yards, but that number is misleading, considering he fell on two botched snaps well behind the line of scrimmage. Fuller pledged during the week that his team would be better in run defense, and FSU does get an advantage in playing against Trevor Jackson as a scout team quarterback in practice. However, what occurred against GT does not look like an issue that can be corrected in one week.
It feels like a perfect storm, with the porous FSU rushing defense matching up with Thomas Castellanos’ legs, a problem for anyone to cover. Castellanos ran for over 1,000 yards in 2023, becoming BC’s leading rusher by over 400 yards. He went for over 100 yards in the final two games of the season against SMU and Miami, and of course, had 95 yards on 16 carries last season against the Seminoles. With a young offensive line on the left side, Bill O’Brien will look to run Castellanos until the tires come off on Labor Day to take the pressure off them and take the crowd out of the game.
The pick: Over
3. Total Score: Over/ Under 50 Points
Last week’s defensive slugfest could turn into an offensive explosion against Boston College.
Florida State’s offense needs to make a statement after the GT debacle, and what better stage to do it than in a standalone game on national television? Norvell should use the entire playbook this time to ensure his team does not get into another dogfight like in Ireland. He will dial up more explosive plays, leading to more possessions, instead of having the clock bleeding out like last week.
BC’s addition of a new defensive coordinator may help create some explosive plays for the Seminoles due to possible miscommunication because of the first-ever game for Tim Lewis and his team using helmet communication.
But, to reach 50, the Eagles need to score, and a unit that returns seven starters from last season should do just that. Castellanos did not get an entire off-season as the starter last year, but he did in 2024, and his improved rep count should translate to cleaner football on the field. O’Brien becoming the head coach also introduces an exciting mix. His style does not exactly mesh with Castellanos’s, but if the play-caller can push the right buttons, he could catch the Seminoles off guard by throwing so many calls at them. FSU may run away with this game later, but the Eagles will score and put up points.
The Pick: Over
There you go, friends, three picks, three winners; everyone enjoy Monday night!
Florida State Seminoles vs. Boston College Eagles: How to watch
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Florida State vs. Boston College Games Notes:
» Florida State opened its season with the program’s first international game in Week 0 against Georgia Tech in Dublin, Ireland, and returns home to host Boston College in Doak Campbell Stadium on Labor Day night. » The Seminoles are 59-18 (.766) all-time in home openers and have won their first home game in each of the last two seasons. » Florida State, the defending ACC champions, topped the 2024 ACC preseason poll voted on by media at ACC Kickoff. FSU’s 16 ACC championships and 10 undefeated ACC seasons since joining the league in 1992 are both tops in the conference in that span.
» The Seminoles have won nine consecutive home games, the 5th-longest active streak in the nation. FSU also ranks 5th in the country with its active streak of seven straight wins in road games. » Florida State is 23-5 since the start of the 2022 season. The team’s 23 total wins and 82.1 winning percentage in that span are the best in the ACC, with the win total ranking 4th nationally and the winning percentage 6th.
» The Seminoles, who won 10 games in 2022 and 13 games in 2023, are the only team in the ACC and one of just 12 nationally to reach double-digit wins in 2022 and 2023.
» Among the six FBS teams that played Week 0, Florida State posted the highest completion percentage (70.4) and the most 4thdown conversions (2). FSU was the only team in the country to convert a 4th-down attempt in Week 0. » The Seminoles’ pass defense continued to excel in the season opener, leading the six FBS teams that played in Week 0 by allowing 146 yards through the air. Last season, FSU led the country in opponent completion percentage (48.3), pass breakups (80), passes defended (90) and passes defended per game (6.43).
» Florida State’s offensive line boasts 355 collegiate games played with 215 starts, both the highest totals in the country. The line includes returning first-team All-ACC offensive tackle Darius Washington, all-conference center Maurice Smith and starting tackle Jeremiah Byers from last year’s group that blocked for the ACC’s highest-scoring offense for the second straight year.
» FSU earned two ACC Player of the Week recognitions in Week 0 when the conference had three teams start their season. Shyheim Brown was named the ACC’s Defensive Back of the Week after recording a career-high 13 tackles, including 1.0 for loss. His tackles total was the most for a Florida State defensive back since current Carolina Panther Jammie Robinson made 18 stops at Florida in 2021. Kicker Ryan Fitzgerald was named the conference’s Specialist of the Week after scoring seven points, courtesy of two field goals and one PAT. He made a career-long 59-yard field goal that is the longest in a conference game in ACC history and third-longest overall by an ACC kicker. His make from 59 yards was six yards longer than his previous career-long and tied the game at 14-14 on the last play of the first half. Additionally, Fitzgerald connected on a 52-yard field goal earlier in the 2nd quarter for his first career game with two field goals of at least 50 yards.
» Florida State returns 73 players from last year’s ACC championship team, a total that includes nine All-ACC honorees, two AllAmericans, two national award semifinalists and the ACC Championship Game MVP. » FSU returns all 11 on-field coaches from last season, the second time in Mike Norvell’s FSU tenure his coaching staff remained intact across multiple seasons. Eight of Norvell’s 10 assistant coaches have been with the program since his first season in 2020.