MSU's Aidan Chiles: 'I Think I'm the Best Quarterback in the Big Ten and the Nation'

Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles has the right mentality as he takes on a much larger role going into his second collegiate season.

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

The Michigan State community has high expectations for its new quarterback Aidan Chiles, but as one would expect, Chiles has the bar set high for himself as well.

The first-year Spartan quarterback is quite confident in his capabilities going into the 2024 season.

"[I] think I'm the best quarterback in the Big Ten and the nation," Chiles said following the Spartans' fall camp practice on Thursday. "Everybody has it [that mentality], though. So, my job is to prove it. But it comes with the work, and also, just the team in general. Like, the team's got to help me out, I got to help them out. So, really, my improvement is based on the team."

As a freshman at Oregon State last year, Chiles served as a backup who only recorded 35 pass attempts.

"The difference between last year and this year, I mean, I love the pressure," Chiles said. "It's -- I don't know how to explain it -- but it's just different now. I get to prove what I can do this year. Last year, I mean, I had one drive a game. And, I mean, I proved a little bit, but nobody really saw what I could do. So, I mean, this year is just -- the pressure's not there, for real. Not in my mind. But I know the team's counting on me to do do what I have to do, and I'm also counting on them."

At the end of the day, Chiles said he's "just trying to win games."

Chiles' offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Brian Lindgren, whom he knew from his lone year in Corvallis, discussed how the Spartans are preparing the young quarterback.

"We're just challenging him on maturity, right?" Lindgren said. "He's such a young guy. He was 17 when he came to Oregon State as a freshman and kind of moving into that role of potentially being the starter for us. He has never started a game -- I think people sometimes tend to forget. So, I think just the maturity is something that we've challenged him [on], and I've seen him take steps, we're just looking for it more consistently."

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