Michigan State QB Aidan Chiles Reflects on 2023 Season at OSU

In a lot of ways, it's surprising that Michigan State coach Jonathan Smith was able to keep quarterback Aidan Chiles at Oregon State in 2023, much less have the former four-star follow him to East Lansing.

Chiles, ranked No. 152 overall in the class of 2023 (247Sports' composite), committed to Smith and the Beavers on June 7, 2022 when Oregon State was fresh off a 10-win season. After Chiles signed his letter of intent on Dec. 21, Smith and the Beavers added Clemson transfer quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei to their roster on Dec. 24.

Uiagalelei had two seasons of college eligibility left, meaning Chiles would potentially have to wait two years before getting his shot as a starter. That would have been enough for a lot of guys, especially four-star quarterbacks who rank near the Top 150, to request a release from their letter of intent and seek a faster route to playing time. Chiles had plenty of potential suitors, having been recruited by the likes of Washington, UCLA, Kansas State, Oregon, Washington State, Rutgers and several others.

Instead, Chiles stuck with Smith, and his loyalty was rewarded during fall camp when Smith and offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren told the freshman he wouldn't be redshirting in 2023 — he was going to play.

"In the middle of fall camp, I was told that I wasn't going to redshirt," Chiles told reporters last week. "So, I knew that was going to happen, but I didn't know how it was going to look."

Confident in his abilities, Chiles believed himself capable of playing right away when he arrived in Corvallis, but he was still taken aback a bit by his coaches' immediate faith in him.

"I didn't plan on coming in to redshirt, that was my thing, but at the same time I was a little like, 'OK, this is really happening,'" Chiles said.

Chiles made a brief appearance in Oregon State's season-opener again San Jose State but got his first true taste of college football the following week when he played the majority of the second half in the Beavers' 55-7 blowout of UC Davis. The freshman completed 9-of-13 pass attempts for 74 yards and a touchdown, while adding 42 rushing yards on four carries with another score.

Eventually, Smith and Lindgren entrusted Chiles with every third series on offense. His talent was too much to keep off the field, even with a former five-star and Top-10 overall prospect in Uiagalelei as the starter. In total, Chiles would appear in nine games as a true freshman, getting valuable reps in a system he will now play within at Michigan State.

"It was very important," Chiles said of his 2023 playing time. "I'm glad I did it, but I'm also glad that I didn't start as a true freshman, simply because if I didn't have D.J. there the growing pains would have been way worse than what they were. And now, like, me adapting to what I had to adapt to, I'm glad I had D.J. there leading me and guiding me so that I could be ready for this right now in this stage."

Asked when the collegiate game started to slow down for him, Chiles didn't have a clear answer.

"I feel like the game was already slow enough for me," he said. "I mean, I played against one of the best defenses in the Pac-12 every day in practice. So, the game was pretty slow to me but at the same time certain games it was different, like the U-Dub [Washington] game. The Utah game was my first [conference] game and I was very nervous...that was a faster paced game for me. But, other games started to slow down and it just felt good."

In talking with Michigan State's coaches and players through the first three weeks of spring practice, there's clearly been a new, positive vibe that was missing during a difficult 2023. Confidence is high in East Lansing.

"I feel it," Chiles said. "I mean, these guys wouldn't have stayed if they didn't feel it. So, I'm happy with the guys we have, and I think we're going to do big things this upcoming fall."

The Michigan State Spartan Football Spring Green and White Game (Spring Showcase) will be held at the High Cathedral of the Spartan Nation, Spartan Stadium, on April 20, 2024, at 2 p.m.

Don’t forget to follow the official Spartan Nation Page on Facebook Spartan Nation WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE, and be a part of our vibrant community group Go Green Go White as well WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.