Greg McElroy reveals where he ranks Florida State after upset of Alabama

There may not have been a bigger surprise in all of college football’s opening weekend than Florida State‘s 31-17 drumming of then No. 8-ranked Alabama in Tallahassee. It rocked the sport.

The Crimson Tide jumped out to a 7-0 lead, but Mike Norvell‘s team responded in a major way. The Seminoles scored 24 unanswered points to take a 24-7 lead with 9:45 remaining in the third quarter and never looked back. Thanks to its big-time win, Florida State has jumped back into the top-15 of the AP Poll Rankings at No. 14.

ESPN‘s Greg McElroy was however much higher on the Seminoles than the AP voters, as he tabbed Florida State as his No. 8 ranked team in the country following its victory over his alma-mater Alabama. He explained the decision on the latest edition of ‘Always College Football.’

McElroy ranks Florida State at No. 8 in the country

“At number eight, here’s where it gets very interesting,” he said. “People will probably panic, freak out, fill in the blank for whatever the reaction might be. At number eight I have the Florida State Seminoles. They were not ranked by me in the preseason, but tell me a team that played quality competition (describe Alabama however you want). I think Alabama is considered quality competition.

“Tell me a team that looked more dominant at times than Florida State. The variety offensively and what we saw from Thomas Castellanos at quarterback (he was incredible in that game). The improved receiver core, the improved physicality along the offensive line. I thought defensively Tony White, whatever they’re paying him, pay him more.

“That was a phenomenal gameplan and he always seemed to call the perfect play at the perfect time to exploit what Alabama was trying to do offensively. I’m not sure there was a team that impressed me more in week one than what I saw from Florida State. They move all the way from unranked to the top-10 for me.”

McElroy’s entire top-10 is below:

1. Ohio State (14-7 win vs. Texas)
2. LSU (17-10 win at Clemson)
3. Penn State (46-11 win vs. Nevada)
4. Georgia (45-7 win vs. Marshall)
5. Oregon (59-13 win vs. Montana State)
6. Miami (27-24 win vs. Notre Dame)
7. Texas (14-7 loss at Ohio State)
8. Florida State (31-17 win vs. Alabama)
9. Utah (43-10 win at UCLA)
10. Notre Dame (27-24 loss at Miami)

Castellanos fueled Florida State victory with swagger and poise

Boston College transfer quarterback Thomas Castellanos had a huge game for Florida State in his program debut. He completed 9-of-14 passes for 152 yards in the air, but made his mark on the ground with 16 carries for 78 yards and a touchdown as part of a high-powered Seminoles rushing attack under new coordinator Gus Malzahn.

Asked about Castellanos’ performance, Mike Norvell said it was emblematic of the way the whole team played. Florida State got it done in all three phases, which shows the payoff of the work the program put in over the offseason.

“It was a complete team victory, and that’s what I love,” Norvell said postgame. “Offense, defense, they showed up big. … That’s what this game is all about. That’s how we train, that’s how we work. They were there for each other and just did a great job together.”

Alabama looked to impose its will on offense with the ground game, but the Florida State defense held strong. The Crimson Tide totaled just 87 rushing yards while Ty Simpson completed 23-of-43 passes for 254 yards and two touchdowns in the air. FSU, meanwhile, totaled 230 rushing yards on the ground – led by the 78 from Castellanos and 56 yards on three carries from Micahi Danzy.

The Seminoles opened the season strong and will look to parlay that performance into another dominant win over East Texas A&M on Saturday. Kick-off is scheduled for 12:00 PM on ACC Network.