Aidan Chiles is nothing if not resilient. Halfway through his junior year at Downey High School, a player landed on his right arm – the same one he uses to throw the football – resulting in a broken forearm.
Of course, it was a setback – both in terms of his on-field development and recruitment. But he persevered through the adversity and found his way back to the field. In fact, he came back better than ever, and success would soon follow.
“I got more heart than most of these dudes out here, I’m just gonna keep it a stack (be honest),” Chiles told an L.A. Times reporter in 2022. “If I gotta compete with somebody, I’m gonna compete. I try to prove myself every time I step on the field.”
Despite the injury, he eventually started to catch the attention of college coaches. It was his relationship with one coach in particular – Oregon State’s Jonathan Smith – that would prove to be the most impactful in his football career trajectory.
While it may not have been clear at the time, each of these events eventually led him on a path to Michigan State University.
Loyalty is a big factor for Aidan Chiles
Just about every Michigan State football fan is now familiar with Aidan Chiles.
The highly sought-after Oregon State transfer committed to MSU on Dec. 14. He is expected to take the reins as the Spartans’ starting quarterback in 2024.
But who is Aidan Chiles as a person, as a player, as a son?
Spartans Illustrated connected with his parents, Adrian Chiles and Nikki Chiles, and posed those questions and more. Together, they shared their insight as to how their son’s story became intertwined with Jonathan Smith’s story, and how the journey to Michigan State had ups and downs along the way.
But before we get to all that, let’s start back at the beginning and learn a little more about Aidan, the person.
“He’s very bright, very inquisitive,” Nikki said about her son. “He’s very active and has been since birth. He is very loyal. He was always the kid who would do very well in class, but he ran his mouth all the time. But he’s very much a leader, and just a pretty cool person. He’s athletic in everything!”
According to Nikki, Aidan has an infectious smile and he loves life and learning.
Both Nikki and Adrian work in schools, and Aidan makes it a point to come in and visit elementary school students. The younger kids admire him and beam with joy every time he comes in.
“He’s a real leader, on and off the field,” Nikki said.
One of the words that both Nikki and Adrian used to describe Aidan was “loyal.”
There are many reasons why Aidan wanted to stick with Smith as his head coach, even after Smith made the move from Oregon State to Michigan State, and loyalty was one of the biggest factors in his decision.
How did Aidan arrive in East Lansing, though?
Well, technically, he doesn’t arrive at MSU until Jan. 4, 2024, with classes beginning on Jan. 8, 2024. Nikki will accompany him and get him settled into his new college home, while Adrian will stay in Long Beach, California with their youngest son, Aaron.
But to understand the course that Aidan took to get where he is today, let’s take a look at his prep days.
