So Far, MSU’s Aidan Chiles Is Delivering on His Promises
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EAST LANSING, Mich. --- Saturday night's game against Boston College was very crucial to Michigan State for a multitude of reasons. The Spartans were able to go get a 42-40, double-overtime victory over the Eagles to take themselves to 2-0 on the season.
Several players had great days that MSU probably couldn't have done without, but Aidan Chiles had the best game of his college career against BC, and anything less would've likely resulted in the result being flipped. The junior quarterback threw for 231 yards and four touchdowns without a pick, and ran for another 39 yards and a fifth total touchdown.
"This group wants it more," said Chiles on what was different from this game and the 23-19 loss to Boston College last season. "We come in, we have player-led team meetings and we talk about how much we want it and what we need to do to win these games to succeed this season.
"And we go out there and we play football how we know how to play football because this team actually wants to do that. This team is really committed to the goal. We're all committed to one common goal and we continue to grow after each and every game."
Delivering on Promises
After the final game of last season, a blowout loss to Rutgers, Chiles made a promise.
"Things need to change," Chiles said last November. "To the fans that stayed at the game, through the game, through the whole season, this will not be the same next year and I can promise you that."
Michigan State faces three teams that it lost to last season (BC, Indiana, Michigan). Getting that revenge win is a great way to show everyone --- fans, players, recruits, other teams --- that the program has taken a step in a positive direction.
The other part about Chiles' promise is that he is the biggest part of it. Improving off a 5-7 campaign requires several players getting better, but Chiles was the starting quarterback who clearly had the potential to be great, but never seemed to harness it.
Frankly, his Week 1 performance against Western Michigan didn't indicate what was coming. Chiles played fine, but 155 passing yards and one touchdown isn't going to fire up the masses too much. He needed to show something against Boston College, and he did just that.
Saturday's five-touchdown performance is the first time Michigan State fans saw the Aidan Chiles they've been dreaming about ever since he followed Jonathan Smith to East Lansing from Oregon State. He made great decisions with the ball the entire game, used his legs to extend and/or create plays, and showed some real improved accuracy with the deep ball.
What's Next
Now, the key is for Michigan State and Chiles to keep it up over the final 10 games of the regular season. MSU needs four more wins to get to bowl eligibility for the first time since 2021.
Next week, the Spartans have Youngstown State, an FCS opponent, coming into East Lansing to wrap up the non-conference slate. That game will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Sept. 13 and will be televised on the Big Ten Network.
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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