April 21, 2026, 1:23 p.m. ET
The Florida State Seminoles have named Ashton Daniels their starting quarterback. They announced the news on Tuesday afternoon.
Daniels, who transferred in from the Auburn Tigers, beat out Kevin Sperry for the job, with the quarterback competetion lasting most of spring practice. It is the third straight season FSU has had a new starting quarterback, with all three being transfers.
Head coach Mike Norvell said last week that he was not yet ready to name a starter between them, but that he was getting closer. He admitted he has been pleased with Daniels’ improvement, especially his ability to hit deep shots, which the offense will look to do regularly under Norvell’s play-calling.
“I’ve really been pleased with what he’s shown,” Norvell said. “Being able to live in the pocket and delivering the ball. I think he’s shown growth through the spring on the vertical shots. And he hit a couple of the scrimmage the other day that were right where they needed to be. I mean, huge plays that supported big drives.”
Daniels has far more experience than Sperry, having played in 37 games over his four-year career, including two seasons as Stanford’s starter. Sperry played in four games last season as a true freshman at FSU, completeting 70.6% of his passes for 194 yards and two touchdowns in a limited sample size, adding 27 rushing yards.
While Daniels has been inconsistent, the redshirt senior has completed 60.8% of his passes for 4,783 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 22 interceptions during his career. He has also rushed for 1,397 yards and 11 touchdowns. He cut down on his turnovers last season and will need to keep that trend going for FSU’s offense to be effective.
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