Michigan State football will look quite different in 2024 under new head coach Jonathan Smith, including under center.
MSU cleared house after 2023, bringing in Smith and a brand new coaching staff, and reshaping the roster through the transfer portal, with nearly two dozen departures and 10 additions.
One of those transfer portal additions is quarterback Aidan Chiles, who followed Smith and offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren from Oregon State, and projects as the Spartans' assumed starting quarterback for the 2024-25 season and the foreseeable future. Chiles, still 18 and a sophom*ore, appeared in limited action over nine games as a true freshman, meaning he could potentially be MSU's quarterback for the next three seasons.
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Chiles has not been officially named the starting quarterback by the coaching staff. He is one of five quarterbacks on the roster, along with sixth-year senior Tommy Schuster, a Michigan native who transferred from North Dakota, true freshmen Alessio Milivojevic and Ryland Jessee, and walk-on redshirt freshman Atticus Carridine.
All of MSU's quarterbacks who played in 2023 — Noah Kim, Sam Leavitt and Katin Houser — transferred in the offseason.
Chiles is the only quarterback on the roster with FBS playing experience, albeit just 91 snaps as a true freshman with Oregon State. He was the backup to DJ Uiagalelei, who had transferred to Oregon State from Clemson, which limited Chiles' action, but Smith still made sure to get him experience.
Schuster started four seasons at the FCS level for UND, throwing for 9,073 passing yards, 63 touchdowns and 843 completions in 42 games over four seasons.
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Chiles is one of the most heralded, if not the most, transfers joining Michigan State in the portal era, even over the likes of Kenneth Walker III or Jayden Reed. While similar production to the latter two in green and white is far from guaranteed, Chiles has an encouraging background that says he could thrive.
Chiles, a 6-foot-3, 217-pound California native, was rated the No. 8 overall transfer, and second-best quarterback transfer going into this fall, according to 247 Sports' rankings. He was a four-star recruit out of Downey High School in the metro Los Angeles area, and the No. 152 overall recruit and No. 12 quarterback in the 2023 class per the 247Sports composite rankings. He signed with Smith and the Beavers originally at the end of 2022, and enrolled early at 17 years old.
In his reserve action last year, Chiles completed 24 of 35 passes for 309 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions, while adding 79 yards and three touchdowns on the ground, showing his ability as a dual-threat option.
Teammate testimonial on Aidan Chiles
If you are curious what Chiles' impact on MSU could look like, take it from a program veteran who has faced off against him in practice throughout the summer, or one of his projected top receivers.
“Aidan has such a vital role on the offense. They work around him,” sixth-year senior defensive tackle Maverick Hansen told reporters last week. “He's the one, he's the one that everyone's looking at to be the guy and everything, just like any other quarterback. Now (Walker) is a running back. But we knew in spring ball before we even hit the season that K9 was a guy, because he would just cut up and he'd be gone before anyone else could touch him. And we're like, 'Holy smokes, this dude is the real deal.' And the coaches would say, 'Oh, K9 ain't gonna be here long. As soon as this season's over, he's in the league.' It's different for a quarterback, absolutely. He's got a lot — he can throw the ball, he can run the ball, he's got a lot of different options, as far as a running back can really just run and block. So I feel like there's a lot of potential there for Aidan."
“Dynamic. I can say that in one word,” senior wide receiver Montorie Foster Jr. told reporters. “But if you want me to go more in detail: He's just a dude, man. He makes plays, he stretches plays. That West Coast offense, being able to get them out the pocket and stretch plays down the field, it helps my game to make more plays down the field.”
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