MSU's Aidan Chiles Could Be the Same Offensive Spark Kenneth Walker III Was

With all the hype surrounding Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles, it's reasonable to anticipate the young quarterback to be the same spark for the offense that Kenneth Walker III was.

Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles throws a pass during the first day of football camp on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in East Lansing. / Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Michigan State football is in a very similar situation as it was going into its memorable 2021 season.

That 2021 team had been coming off a two-win season, much like how this current squad comes off an embarassing four-win 2023 campaign.

Then you look at the highly-touted transfer each team had. In 2021, it was Kenneth Walker III, the transfer running back from Wake Forest who, of course, went on to win the 2021 Doak Walker Award. This year, there's quarterback Aidan Chiles, the young transfer from Oregon State.

With Chiles leading the charge, it seems all aspirations point to him having the same impact on the offense as Walker did in 2021.

Michigan State sixth-year graduate senior defensive tackle Maverick Hansen was one of the few left on the roster who was part of that 2021 group. Having experienced the hype that surrounded Walker back then, Hansen can compare that offseason to Chiles'.

"Aidan has such a vital role on the offense.," Hansen told reporters on Tuesday. "I mean, they work around him. Like, he's the one that everyone's looking at to be the guy and everything. But just like any other quarterback. Now K9's a running back. But we knew in spring ball, before he 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 were like, 'Holy smokes, this dude is the real deal.' And the coaches would say, 'Oh, K9 ain't going to be here long. Like, as soon as the season's over, he's in the league.' And they gave him the opportunities.

" ... It's different for a quarterback. Yeah, absolutley. He can throw the ball, he can run the ball, he's got a lot of different options. ... So, I feel like there's a lot of potential there for Aidan. He's young, too, and he's been developing. He pushes the team to be great."

Chiles could very well be that same spark Walker was for Michigan State's offense, but before anyone gets too ahead of themselves, the Spartans will need to take this season one game at a time to reach the success that 2021 team had.

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