Boston College football coach Bill O’Brien had some choice words when speaking on the benching of his former quarterback Thomas Castellanos to CBS Sports Network’s Andrea Kremer.
O’Brien benched Castellanos for Grayson James prior to the Eagles’ Nov. 16 loss to SMU, which prompted Castellanos to enter the transfer portal. It was an interesting case study for college football in the transfer portal era, as many suggested Castellanos quit on his team, given his midseason exit as BC still chased bowl eligibility.
‘He brought in Castellanos and told him he’s making him second team, and to view it as an opportunity to sit back, learn, improve, work hard and be ready,’ Kremer said O’Brien told her. ‘Bill O’Brien said (Castellanos) didn’t like it and he left the team.
‘I then asked (O’Brien), does this typify the issue with players transferring, and he said, ‘99% of our guys are tough and smart, he was an outlier at BC.’
According to Kremer, O’Brien called Castellanos an outlier, claiming the former quarterback was not tough and smart, based on what Kremer shared on CBS Sports Network. Not a great sign for Boston College.
Before his benching, Castellanos was 99 of 161 passing (61.5%) for 1,366 yards with 18 touchdowns to five interceptions, along with 93 rushes for 194 yards with a touchdown. His rushing total took a severe hit in 2024, as he ran for 1,113 yards with 13 touchdowns in his first season as the starter in 2023.
Regardless, Castellanos will likely get another shot as a starting quarterback for a different school. However, it appears Castellanos just wasn’t the right fit for O’Brien in 2024, whether O’Brien was right or wrong about his animated assessment via Kremer.