🏹 May 26th - The Chief Brief 🏹

Noles Are Hosting. Golf Is Rolling. Recruiting is Heating Up.

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The Chief
May 26, 2025

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🏹 Welcome to The Chief Brief! 🏹

Happy Memorial Day, Seminole!

It’s postseason time in Tallahassee — and the Noles are right in the thick of it.

⛳ FSU Men’s Golf holds on to a top-8 spot after Sunday and enters Monday’s final stroke-play round at the NCAA Championship with a shot at match play. Clanton’s steady hand and Weaver’s breakout round keep the dream alive.

⚾️ FSU Baseball officially earns regional hosting duties for the 37th time in program history. With a strong RPI and expert projections placing them as a top-12 seed, the Noles will soon find out who’s coming to town.

🔥 As the Castellanos era begins, ACC analysts say the fit with Gus Malzahn could ignite one of the most electric offenses in the country — if the run game steps up.

💔 In a moving postgame moment, Michaela Edenfield and Coach Alameda reminded us what college sports are really about. FSU’s season may have ended, but their legacy of heart and perseverance lives on.

🐘 ‘Bama EDGE commit Jamarion Matthews is still solid with the Tide — but he’s coming to Tallahassee in June. Can FSU flip the disruptive pass-rusher?

🚨 Four-star DL Earnest Rankins locks in his June visit, joining a growing list of blue-chip visitors. Georgia may lead now, but FSU is officially in the mix.

Let’s get into it. 👇

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⛳ FSU Advances to Final Round at NCAA Golf Championship ⛳

The Noles are still in the hunt.

No. 11 Florida State advanced to the final round of stroke play at the NCAA Championship Finals after finishing Sunday in 8th place at 9-over (873) — safely above the 15-over cutline.

🔁 What’s Next:
• Final round of stroke play: Monday at 2:45 PM ET
• Top 8 teams after Monday advance to match play beginning Tuesday

🎯 Sunday Highlights:
• Luke Clanton shot 71, moving to 3-under and T-9 on the individual leaderboard
• Tyler Weaver carded an even-par 72 with five birdies — his best round of the tourney
• Carson Brewer (77) and Jack Bigham (79) struggled on a windy day, but FSU held on

📊 Leaderboard Snapshot:
• 8. Florida State – 873 (+9)
• Clanton – 70, 72, 71 (T9)
• Brewer – 69, 72, 77 (T33)
• Weaver – 74, 74, 72 (T47)

The goal on Monday: top 8 by day’s end and a shot at the national title in match play.

📍 Tallahassee Named NCAA Regional Host for 37th Time 📍

We're staying home for the postseason (for now).

Florida State Baseball will officially host an NCAA Regional for the second straight season and the 37th time in program history. The full bracket, including FSU’s seeding and opponents, will be revealed during Monday’s NCAA Selection Show at noon ET on ESPN2.

🏆 Resume Snapshot:
• 38–14 overall | 17–10 ACC (2nd place)
• No. 14 in RPI | No. 24 strength of schedule
• 13–10 vs. Quad 1 | 4–3 vs. Quad 2
• 1–1 in ACC Tournament (semifinal loss to UNC)

🧠 Expert Projections:
• D1Baseball: No. 12 seed | Hosts Northeastern, Mississippi State, Bethune-Cookman | Paired with Baton Rouge Regional
• Baseball America: No. 10 seed | Hosts Alabama, Oklahoma State, Bethune-Cookman | Paired with Auburn Regional

🎟️ What’s Next:
Game times and official opponents will drop after Monday’s bracket reveal. All signs point to a power-packed weekend in Tallahassee.

🔥 Castellanos + Malzahn = FSU’s 2025 X-Factor? 🔥

It’s not just FSU fans who are curious — ACC insiders are watching the Tommy Castellanos era with real intrigue.

ACC Network’s Wes Durham and Roddy Jones shared their thoughts with Warchant on how the Boston College transfer could thrive under Gus Malzahn’s offense in Tallahassee.

💬 Wes Durham:

“Castellanos is a playmaker and a showstopper… If the run game’s healthy and there are weapons outside, it could be really, really good.”

💬 Roddy Jones:

“You’ve got to direct that energy… There’ll be some off-schedule magic — and a few mistakes — but Gus is the guy to make it work.”

🔍 What They’re Watching:
• Durability: At 5'11", Castellanos must be smart about contact
• Ball Security: 14 INTs in 2023 → just 5 in 2024 — can he keep trending up?
• Run Game Support: FSU ranked 129th in rushing last year — and that has to change

🚀 Help on the Way:
• 4 offensive line transfers
• New backs: Gavin Sawchuk + 4⭐ freshman Ousmane Kromah
• Playcaller chemistry — Castellanos originally committed to Malzahn at UCF

If Gus can unlock Castellanos’ full skillset while limiting the chaos, FSU’s offense could be as dangerous as it’s been in years.

💔 A Loss, a Legacy, and the Soul of College Sports 💔

While headlines trumpeted “$1 million NIL deals” and Texas Tech’s rise behind softball superstar NiJaree Canady, a different story played out in the FSU postgame press conference — one that reminded us why we still care.

The Seminoles’ 2–1 season-ending loss to Texas Tech stung. Seven errors. Missed chances. A super-regional exit that didn’t match the team’s top-10 talent.

But in the minutes after, catcher Michaela Edenfield and head coach Lonni Alameda offered a powerful reminder: money may shape rosters, but heart still shapes the game.

🎙️ Edenfield, emotional at the mic:

“While I was catching, I was looking around, trying to soak in all my surroundings at the Plex… I really couldn’t have asked for anything more than for the team to be present on defense at that point.”

She spoke through tears about her final at-bat — a double off the game’s most dominant pitcher — and about Alameda’s mentorship:

“She told me this past week, ‘It has all been written. Control the ‘feelings’ part and come out with the facts.’”

Alameda, herself undergoing cancer treatment, paused before answering what her team meant to her:

“For me personally, it has been my rock… I could come here for four or five hours and not have to think about what is going on.”

From campus tragedy to medical battles, FSU’s 2025 team endured more than most — and still played with pride and love.

🧠 Perspective:
Yes, NIL is real. Canady’s million-dollar deal is real. But so is Edenfield’s five-year journey — from athlete to leader to graduate. So is Jamie Arnold raising $11,000 for a young fan with cystic fibrosis. So is the record-setting GPA posted by FSU athletes this year.

So maybe two things can be true:
• NIL has changed college sports
• College sports still change lives

🐘 4⭐ ‘Bama EDGE Commit Jamarion Matthews Sets FSU OV 🐘

Florida State is officially in the mix to flip one of the Southeast’s most disruptive edge rushers — Alabama commit Jamarion Matthews.

The 6’2”, 240-pound Gainesville (Ga.) standout will take an official visit to Tallahassee in June, giving the Seminoles a chance to make a serious impression before a final decision.

🎯 Where Things Stand:
• Committed to Alabama since February
• Official visits set: FSU, Auburn, LSU
• Still “locked in” with ‘Bama — but says he’s open to being swayed

💬 Matthews on FSU:
• “I’ve been talking to Florida State for a couple months now…”
• “Coach Knighton — he’s a really cool coach.”
• “I could see myself playing there, but they really have to show me I am wanted in their program.”

📊 Junior Season Stats:
• 57 tackles
• 29 TFL
• 17 sacks
• 15 QB hurries

Ranked No. 156 overall and the No. 17 EDGE in the 2026 class, Matthews is one of the most productive pass-rushers in the country. Now it’s up to FSU to roll out the red carpet.

🚨 4⭐ DL Earnest Rankins Locks In FSU Official Visit 🚨

Florida State will get its shot at one of the Peach State’s top defensive linemen.

Earnest Rankins, a 6'6", 285-pound four-star out of Southwest DeKalb (GA), has scheduled his official visit to Tallahassee for the weekend of June 6–8 — a weekend already shaping up to be loaded with high-profile visitors.

📅 Official Visit Schedule:
• ✅ Auburn – May 16
• 🔜 Florida State – June 6–8
• 🔜 Ohio State – June 9
• 🔜 Georgia – June 20

🔍 Prospect Profile:
• No. 111 overall | No. 17 DL nationally (247Sports)
• Georgia holds the lone Crystal Ball prediction

Rankins is a high-upside prospect with elite size and athleticism — and the Seminoles will have the chance to make their pitch in just a few weeks.

And that’s a wrap!

That’s a wrap on a weekend full of momentum, emotion, and massive stakes.

The NCAA Selection Show airs at noon today — and we’ll have full coverage of FSU Baseball’s regional matchups as they drop. Meanwhile, the golf team is teeing off with a shot at glory, and June recruiting battles are heating up fast.

Whether it’s Edenfield’s legacy, Castellanos’ potential, or the next wave of blue-chip visitors — this edition proves one thing: the future in Tallahassee is still burning bright. 🔥

Talk soon,

— The Chief Brief Team

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