Tennessee fans saved one of their sharpest jabs for a rival coach — and united with the Florida State fanbase at the same time. During ESPN’s “College GameDay” on Saturday, the Volunteers faithful broke into Florida State’s famed war chant as Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer was interviewed on set — a not-so-subtle reminder of the Crimson Tide’s Week 1 loss to the Seminoles. Even Kirk Herbstreit had to acknowledge the moment on X.
Oops…😂 #CollegeGameDaypic.twitter.com/WIeb4iciJu
— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) September 13, 2025
Alabama opened 2025 with a 31–17 loss against Florida State, ending a 23-game streak of season-opening wins. Quarterback Ty Simpson threw for 254 yards and 2 touchdowns in Tallahassee, but the Tide were out-rushed 230–87 as FSU’s new starter Tommy Castellanos paced a physical ground game (78 rushing yards, 1 TD).
DeBoer’s team responded a week later by blanking UL Monroe 73–0, scoring on all 11 possessions (10 TDs, one field goal) and holding the Warhawks to 148 total yards. Simpson went a hyper-efficient 17 of 17 for 226 yards and 3 TDs, while receiver Germie Bernard caught two scores. But the shutout wasn’t enough to erase what is in the minds of a lot of college football fans.
Florida State has raced to 2–0, first toppling Alabama and then hanging 77–3 on East Texas A&M as Castellanos threw 3 TDs and the Seminoles scored on 10 straight drives. FSU cracked the top 10 (No. 10) in this week’s AP poll…