Auburn Tigers transfer quarterback Ashton Daniels is officially the Florida State Seminoles' starting quarterback for the 2026 season. Former FSU QB1 Thomas Castellanos is filing a lawsuit against the NCAA seeking an injunction for a fifth year and to enter the transfer portal. Previously, the 'Noles had interest in bringing Castellanos back in December, but after landing Daniels in the portal, that plan is now officially dissolved. Castellanos is looking elsewhere, meaning Daniels is the man now.
Daniels is certainly playing like someone who knows it's his team down in Tallahassee. Florida State head coach and lead play-caller Mike Norvell pointed out how confident Daniels has been since the start of fall camp.
"From where we left in spring to where he’s been in these six days, and even some of the decisions that he had tonight, you can just feel that command," Norvell said. "He had some really nice throws on third down. The placement and where he’s able to place the football has been really good.”
Daniels, now in his fifth and final season of eligibility on his third team and the second he's been given the keys from the jump, likely always knew he'd get this job. After all, Noles247's Brendan Sonnone reported that Daniels' salary was "up to above $1M, and perhaps as much as $1.5M."
It'd have been strange to pay him that much and then put him in a competition with another not-cheap arm.
Ashton Daniels can become a hero in Tallahassee
Few are expecting much from Norvell's program this fall. If anything, some may be waiting on the other shoe to drop with the team's early-season gauntlet, featuring the Alabama Crimson Tide and SMU Mustangs in the first month.
What if Daniels actually gets the job done, though? What if Norvell isn't a lame duck after all?
During his limited time starting at Auburn, Daniels proved that he could get close to winning big games against ranked opponents. Sure, that's not a term anyone wanted to hear from Hugh Freeze about the team in year three, but Daniels was rushed into the starting job after Jackson Arnold faltered. He deserves props for being close in the circumstance he was in.
Daniels came in and was as good a backup as you could ask for. Against the Vanderbilt Commodores and the Crimson Tide last November, Daniels and the defense had the Tigers ahead and tied at various points in the fourth quarter, respectively.
Shrink the margins against ACC competition, and Daniels may have a chance to truly make something of Florida State. After a brutal two-campaign stretch post-CFP snub in 2023, Daniels can become a beacon of hope for a historic program that has very little of it right now.
Ashton Daniels used Auburn for what he needed it for and vice versa
In hindsight, it was somewhat disrespectful of Freeze to bring Daniels in as a backup who didn't actually have a chance to start until everything had fallen apart. It all worked out for Daniels in the end, though.
Daniels used AU for what he needed, which was a springboard to be a starter elsewhere, while the Tigers got a fill-in who kept them competitive in games. In hindsight, maybe you would've rather had Deuce Knight getting comfortable leading the team to convince him to stay, but it is what it is.
Daniels and Auburn should be in better situations this year, but at least last year was salvaged down the stretch somewhat for both parties.
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