Florida State’s offense enters 2026 with a very different look from the one that opened last season, but the early returns still don’t suggest a unit ready to light up Alabama.
A year ago, the Seminoles were coming off one of the nation’s worst offenses in 2024, when they managed just 15.4 points per game with D.J. Uiagalelei at quarterback.
Then Gus Malzahn arrived as offensive coordinator in what was billed as his final stop, and Tommy Castellanos came in at quarterback. The results improved fast: Florida State averaged 33 points per game last season, finished 22nd nationally, and got its rushing attack up to 5.2 yards per carry as multiple backs and Castellanos helped carry the load.
The passing game, though, still looked very much like a Gus Malzahn offense. Florida State completed fewer than 60% of its throws, but the completions it did connect on went for 15.3 yards apiece.
That setup changed quickly. Malzahn retired, Castellanos graduated, and the Seminoles had to retool again.
Tim Harris Jr., who had worked with Malzahn at UCF before following him to Florida State last year, was promoted to offensive coordinator. But head coach Mike Norvell also took back play-calling duties only one year after calling plays for one of the worst offenses in the country.
So far in 2026, the offense has been uneven. Florida State opened with 34 points in a struggle win over New Mexico State, then put up 24 against SMU.
The run game has been the steadier piece. Ousmane Kromah has 231 rushing yards at 6.4 yards per carry through two games, and former Auburn quarterback Ashton Daniels gives the Seminoles another legitimate rushing threat.
The passing numbers are a different story. Daniels is completing 58% of his throws and averaging only 6.5 yards per attempt. That tracks with what he’s been at Auburn last year and at Stanford the two seasons before that: a veteran scrambler with accuracy and interception issues that have followed him for years.
Florida State’s top target last season was Duce Robinson, the former USC five-star recruit who looks more like a small tight end than a true receiver. He topped 1,000 yards in the Seminoles’ low-volume passing attack a year ago, but he has only five catches for 75 yards this season as Daniels has had a tougher time finding him than Castellanos did in 2025.
Micahi Danzy remains the other key name in the passing game. He was originally a running back, posted just under 600 receiving yards last year, and is often used on jet sweeps. His real value is still as a vertical threat - he averaged 21 yards per catch last season - but this year he leads the team with six receptions for only 69 yards.
Up front, Florida State rebuilt almost the entire offensive line through the transfer portal. The group includes center Bradyn Welch-Joiner, who started at Auburn before starting all last season at Purdue; left tackle Xavier Chaplin, a multi-year starter at Virginia Tech and then Auburn; right guard Nate Pabst, a three-year starter at Bowling Green and a second-team All-MAC pick; and right guard Chimdia Nwaiwu, an all-conference starter at Stephen F.
Austin last year. The line has enough experience to hold its own, and it has helped the run game, though it has also allowed four sacks.
There’s still plenty of mess around this offense, but Florida State does have enough in Daniels’ scrambling and Kromah’s running to avoid being completely shut down. Kane Wommack’s defense has had some trouble over the last two years against offenses built around quarterback runs, so this matchup should at least offer a real test for the defensive line’s offseason progress. Even so, the expectation here is a Florida State total somewhere in the 14-16 point range, similar to Kentucky, while perhaps being a little more efficient on a per-play basis.
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