Former Fsu Qb Thomas Castellanos Commits To Texas Tech As Red Raiders Get Potential Brendan Sorsby Replacement

Quarterback Thomas Castellanos has committed to Texas Tech, per On3.

Castellanos joins the Red Raiders after spending last season with Florida State. Texas Tech has had a question mark under center ever since former quarterback Brendan Sorsby left the team amid his gambling investigation.

Sorbsy was initially given a two-game suspension, but Big 12 teams reportedly threatened to refuse to play Texas Tech if he remained the team's quarterback. The Texas attorney general got involved, and the Big 12 then sought to take legal action against the attorney general and the program, which turned into a huge offseason mess.

Sorsby chose to leave the program and turn his attention first to the 2026 supplemental NFL Draft and then to the 2027 NFL Draft, once the NFL announced there would be no supplemental draft. With Sorsby out of the picture, Texas Tech was expected to start Will Hammond, who head coach Joey McGuire said won the job during fall camp.

Castellanos joining the team late calls into question whether Hammond will be able to hang on to that starting role as the No. 12 Red Raiders open the season at home on Sept. 5 against Abilene Christian. Hammond is coming off a torn ACL last October.

Castellanos spent the 2025 season with Florida State after stops with UCF and Boston College. He played in 12 games and finished with 2,760 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions. Castellanos is a dual-threat quarterback and added 557 yards and nine more scores on the ground.

The quarterback actually accepted invites to mandatory minicamp with both the Tennessee Titans and the Miami Dolphins. With the college football world dealing with players who went undrafted, leaving the NFL to return to college, it will be interesting to see whether this signing is blocked if Castellanos participated in those minicamps.

Hammond has been with Texas Tech for two years as a backup. He has played in 12 total games and has seen limited playing time, tallying just 166 passing attempts. Hammond threw for seven touchdowns with three interceptions in eight games last season.