'He Passed Away 3 Years Ago': Story Behind Tommy Castellanos’ Diamond Chain Can Move Anyone to Tears

His performance against the Alabama Crimson Tide has the nation excited about FSU football for the first time since the height of the 2023 season, and people are beginning to ask questions. Questions like, “Who is Tommy Castellanos?” “Where did he come from?” “What’s this kid’s story?”

The Boston College transfer is only 22 years old, yet he already seems to have the makings of the ACC’s next superstars. After the field storm in Tallahassee had subsided, Castellanos returned to the field to partake in his first big interview while sporting a custom-made gold chain.

At a glance, it seemed to be just another way to celebrate the upset in style, but according to Castellanos himself, the diamond-encrusted piece provides more sentimental value than anything else. “I didn’t buy it. It’s my brother’s chain,” he explained. “He passed away three years ago.”

“He was my older brother. He played quarterback as well, and the family just passed it down to me. I don’t really wear it much, but on game day, stuff like that, I just kind of have him in my heart and have him with me. That’s why I wear it.”

All it took was nine pass completions for Castellanos to remove the Tide from the top-10 rankings, but that was still enough for him to notch 152 passing yards. Most of the damage that the senior did on Saturday came on the ground, as he also rushed 16 times for a total of 78 yards and one touchdown.

Castellanos breaks the rock following FSU’s upset over Alabama

Until something better comes along, the Seminoles’ upset win over the eighth-ranked team in the nation will likely go down as one of, if not the biggest, upsets of the entire 2025 season. As a result, it was only right for the FSU debutante to be the one to carry on the team’s tradition of smashing the rock in the locker room.

It may be a bit early, but murmurs of Castellanos joining the Heisman trophy conversation are already beginning to emerge. Should he somehow manage to maintain this level of production for the remainder of the season, then there’s certainly a chance that he can enter the mix.

Of course, they’ll need to win some more games as well. Thankfully, for both Castellanos and the rest of the program, the ACC shouldn’t provide many challenges greater than the one they just faced. Miami, Clemson, and Florida are the only ranked teams left on their regular-season slate, and the first of those matchups won’t come until the first weekend of October.

Should they manage to survive the Hurricanes, then they’ll have another month to prepare for their battle with the Tigers in South Carolina. At the end of the day, what happened at Doak S. Campbell Stadium this weekend was anything but a fluke.

The rest of the conference had better start to prepare for the challenge that awaits in this iteration of FSU; otherwise, they’ll risk being embarrassed on the national stage just like Alabama.