Tommy Castellanos has a special purpose on the football field.
He's one of 11 siblings, but his oldest brother, Akeem Jones, died in December 2021, just before Castellanos left for college.
He's dedicated his whole college career to his older brother, and to his whole family.
“He was like the head of the snake,” Castellanos told Boston.com in 2023. “It’s almost like the head getting chopped off when he passed away. It weakened me. Mentally, I was confused, and I was lost.”
Jones had been a junior college quarterback in Kansas, and now Castellanos seeks to continue that legacy.
He began his college career at Central Florida, then went to Boston College, and he's now at Florida State.
Castellanos' father died when he was 3, and his family grew up with his single mother, Yukia, in a house in Waycross, Georgia.
“I’m very thankful for her,” Castellanos told Boston.com. “She’s the reason why I am who I am today.”
Castellanos was a big kid and began as an offensive lineman, but he eventually found his way to QB, where his supreme athleticism shone.
A couple years ago, when Castellanos was first breaking out at BC, he summed up his journey like this:
“Now, I’m doing what I dreamed of doing. Now, I am who I dreamed of being.”
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