Former Rivals Alex Orji And Aidan Chiles Launch Inspiring Youth Football Camp

UNLV's Alex Orji and Michigan State's Aidan Chiles set aside their rivalry to start a quarterback camp that’s now a growing tradition focused on mentorship, development, and community impact.

Michigan quarterback Alex Orji (10) runs against Oregon during the second half at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Around this time last year, now UNLV Rebels quarterback Alex Orji, who was then with the Michigan Wolverines, along with Michigan State Spartans quarterback Aidan Chiles started an inspiring tradition between the two rival schools. The duo put the in-state Michigan rivalry aside to host a camp ran by Donovan Dooley's Quarterback University, Child's Play Foundation, and the Athlete Collective. With Orji now making the move to Las Vegas, current freshman Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood carried the torch for Orji and stepped into his spot. It was an impressive and mature tradition that Orji and Chiles started last year, and now it will continue. 

While the fact that these schools are still rivals is not lost on Chiles, he also knows this is a great thing for their community. 

“I'm gonna be real. Honestly, it's kind of weird, just because we are rivals and we all know how things play out outside of this," Chiles said. "But other than that, it's just coming together for the community, just being better people and trying to make better quarterbacks, better futures.” 

These two quarterbacks are also both very competitive and still use this to get better. Both quarterbacks spoke about this.

"I'm very competitive with myself, so I just want to see how far I can go," Underwood said.

"Just making sure that everything's polished, so that I can go into the season and be ready, make all the throws I need to make, as simple as that," Chiles said.

Orji now has a different in-state rival in the Nevada Wolf Pack. With all the community building the Rebels athletic department has been doing as of late, it will be interesting to see if introduces a similar idea in Vegas with a rival Wolf Pack quarterback. It could be a great opportunity for both the players and the community.

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