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USA Today
15 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Five questions facing Michigan State football heading into 2025 season
Five questions facing Michigan State football heading into 2025 season Michigan State football is about to enter Jonathan Smith's second year as head coach of the team. The Spartans had a disappointing season in 2024, going 5-7 in Smith's first season, and will be looking to rebound behind former top recruit and starting quarterback Aidan Chiles, along with a restocked roster of young players and transfers. Below, we took a look at five questions that will be facing MSU football going into the season: 1. Is Aidan Chiles elite? In 2024, Aidan Chiles showed that he has a huge arm, speed, and plays with a lot of fearlessness. He also threw 11 interceptions and fumbled the ball four times. We all know that ball control, especially in college football, is paramount and a big part of what separates a talented quarterback and an elite one. You can make all the flashy plays, but if you are turning it over at that rate, you aren't breaking into that 'elite' category. Chiles will need to limit the negative plays and increase the positive ones and truly become the elite quarterback he has the potential to be if this team wants to reach its ceiling. 2. Will the offensive line hold up? It can be argued that the offensive line was the biggest weakness last year for the Spartans. This year, MSU has reloaded with some very interesting transfers: Luka Vincic, Matt Gulbin and Conner Moore. They will also be getting Kris Phillips and Ashton Lepo back from injury, and Stanton Ramil will be a redshirt sophomore and should continue to improve with another offseason under his belt. That all begs the question: Will the offensive line hold up? The running backs' room is almost entirely new faces, and Aidan Chiles will need a chance to make some plays. MSU's offensive line will be one of the biggest stories of the season. 3. Can MSU generate a pass rush? Not to beat a dead horse, but Michigan State's pass rush was not good last year. In fact, a lot of the time it felt like they didn't even have a pass rush at all. The Spartans' leading rusher was Khris Bogle with four sacks. Their second leading pass rusher was a linebacker, Jordan Turner, who had a whopping three sacks. MSU used to be known for their defense, and they will need to find some pass rush because the Big Ten isn't getting any easier. 4. Does MSU have enough depth to weather injuries? No team wants to prepare for injuries, but a lot of times, a college football season becomes a war of attrition and you need to be able to weather the storm. While the Spartans have added some nice pieces this offseason through the portal, they are still a little thin at some positions and if there is an injury, it will be interesting to see how they handle that. 5. Is Martin Connington ready to take over for Jonathan Kim? Is it crazy to say that Jonathan Kim was MSU's best weapon last year? In a year where the Spartans' offense often sputtered, Jonathan Kim was a bright spot, hitting over 90-percent of his field goals. Heck, Jonathan Kim basically won the Iowa game by himself, hitting a school record six field goals against the Hawkeyes, including a 55-yard bomb. While kickers aren't the usual position of note in the offseason, the Spartans are now replacing Kim, one of the best kickers in school history, with a freshman, Martin Connington. While Connington is coming in with a lot of hype (a top ten kicker in his class), he is being asked to replace a lot of production, and I suspect this team will need to be able to take those supposedly easy points when they can get them. Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter @IAmBrewster.
Miami Herald
02-06-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Michigan State Spartans Football Preview 2025: Prediction, Win Total, Top 10 Players, Keys to the Season
2025 Michigan State PreviewMichigan State Offense BreakdownMichigan State Defense Breakdown Michigan State Spartans Key to the Season Be a whole lot Spartans have talent, and they should be good, but they can't keep screwing special teams gave up too many blocked kicks, neither side did anything on third or fourth downs, and there weren't enough takeaways. Penalties, turnovers, pass protection, red zone efficiency - everything has to be cleaned up. Michigan State Spartans Key Player Aidan Chiles, QB any pass rusher, or either offensive tackle, or one of the transfer wide receivers, and you probably have the key player. But Michigan State will go as far as Chiles talent is there to be special, and at some point it'll all click. But he has to be far, far more accurate on a consistent basis, he has to move the chains, and he can't keep putting the ball into harm's way like he does. Michigan State Spartans Top Transfer, Biggest Transfer Loss Top Transfer In: Joshua Eaton, CB three years of not doing much at Oklahoma, he transferred to Texas State and became one of the Sun Belt's best corners. He still has yet to pick off a pass in his five seasons of play, but there's NFL upside with his combination of tools. He's needed because of the loss of …Top Transfer Out: Charles Brantley, CB of the stars of last season, Brantley picked off three passes, took one for a score, and broke up seven. He's ultra-quick, has four years of experience, and now he's taking his talents to South Beach to be a key corner for Miami. Michigan State Spartans Key Game at USC, Sept. 20The last meeting with the Trojans was in the 1990 Sun Bowl - Michigan State won 17-16 to tie the series at there's any hope for this to be a bowl season, the Spartans must beat Boston College on the way to a 3-0 start. After starting the Big Ten at USC, there's a week off before going to Nebraska, and a trip to Indiana soon follows to make it three road games in four conference dates - and that's before the hard part of the slate kicks in.- 2025 Michigan State Schedule Breakdown Michigan State Spartans Top 10 Players 1. Nikai Martinez, S Sr.2. Aidan Chiles, QB Sr.3. Malik Spencer, S Sr.4. Nick Marsh, WR Soph.5. Elijah Tau-Tolliver, RB Sr.6. Jack Veiling, TE Sr.7. Jordan Hall, LB Jr.8. Joshua Eaton, CB Sr.9. Conner Moore, OT Jr.10. Ryan Eckley, P Jr. Michigan State Spartans 2024 Fun Stats - Fumbles: Michigan State 11 (lost 7), Opponents 8 (lost 2)- 3rd Quarter Scoring: Opponents 88, Michigan State 23- Penalties: Michigan State 80 for 760 yards, Opponents 50 for 407 yards Michigan State Spartans 2025 Season Prediction, Win Total, What Will Happen As hammered home throughout this, Michigan State had a whole slew of problems. It struggled in too many easy areas, it couldn't score, couldn't hold up in key situations, made too many errors, and …It went 5-7 and should've beaten Boston as close as it was to getting bowl eligible, it played like hot garbage in a tough win over a horrible Florida Atlantic team, got out alive against a bad Maryland squad, and caught the massive break of enjoying the speedbump that was Purdue - and that was way closer than it should've been. This year, there's no Ohio State or Oregon on the slate, and missing Illinois, Rutgers, Washington, and Wisconsin isn't a bad deal, either. On the down side, Northwestern and Purdue are also two toughest games - Michigan and Penn State - are in East Lansing, and there are just enough winnable games to win four games just by showing are still too many issues that need fixing to win all the games it should, so there will be a whiff or two - like a home game against UCLA or Maryland - when Aidan Chiles makes too many mistakes. But there will also be that game or two when Chiles goes be another ragged season, but it'll be better, and it'll end with a bowl The Michigan State Spartans Win Total At … 6Likely Wins: Western Michigan, Youngstown State50/50 Games: Boston College, at Indiana, at Iowa, Maryland, at Minnesota, at Nebraska, UCLALikely Losses: Michigan, Penn State, at USC2025 Michigan State PreviewMichigan State Offense BreakdownMichigan State Defense Breakdown © 2025 The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.
USA Today
12-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Heisman Trophy odds post for Michigan State starting quarterback Aidan Chiles, others
Heisman Trophy odds post for Michigan State starting quarterback Aidan Chiles, others Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles is a long shot pick to win the Heisman Trophy this upcoming season. Chiles winning the Heisman Trophy for best college football player in 2025 is listed at +15000 (or 150-1 odds). Chiles has the best odds to win the prestigious award of any other Spartans on the roster this season. Last year at this time, Chiles also was listed at +15000 to win the Heisman Trophy -- so, one year later his odds to do remain the same. Odds are courtesy of FanDuel. Chiles had an up-and-down first year with the Spartans, throwing for 2,415 yards, 13 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He was better in the back half of the season, though, which should give fans some hope for further growth in 2025. Chiles and the Spartans open the 2025 season against Western Michigan on August 30. Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Make Spartan Stadium Great Again
From hosting epic clashes between two Top 25-ranked football teams to a U2 Concert in the summer of 2011, Michigan State's Spartan Stadium was always buzzing. Ironically, that concert led to a multi-million dollar update to the stadium before the 2012 football season. Including the three more modernized scoreboards. They were an awesome addition. But that was well over 12 years ago. Aidan Chiles (No. 2) hugs a staff member, following the Spartans' Senior Night home loss against Indiana© Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images The buzz about the now 102-year-old stadium is all but a memory. It's a place that teams used to fear coming to. The Spartans played good ball. But the better part of the last seven years has become a footnote compared to the rest of the Big Ten. Advertisement The scoreboards have outlived their 12-year window. Thankfully, this offseason work has been underway to install new ones, plus an upgrade to the West Tower of the Stadium. The environment alone for a long time, was one of the best in the country, despite its less than 80,000-seat capacity. Still, the crowd was always energized. Outside of the magical Kenneth Walker III season in 2021, Spartan Stadium has seen more losses than wins as of late. The 2024 season alone was rough, as the Spartans went a woeful 2-5 at home. Who can forget the 2023 season, when the final home game was moved to Ford Field in Detroit? Just for the Spartans to get their teeth knocked in by Penn State. Sure, it's cold that last game, but here we are again in 2025, MSU will face Maryland at Ford Field in the final week of the regular season. Rival Michigan isn't moving 'The Game' against Ohio State from either Ann Arbor or Columbus at the end of the season or vice versa. Advertisement Attendance for the final games at Michigan State these past few years has seen a decline in attendance. Being bad at football is one thing, but most like to blame the weather at the end of the day for not showing up. It's clear a mix of both. There was a time when the Stadium was full even in the rain, wind, or snow. Just think of the Mark Dantonio Era, Spartan Stadium was amongst the best venues on any given Saturday. No matter the size, it was a great place to watch football. Can Jonathan Smith get it back to that level? It's going to take some time, but the 2025 season will provide some tests to see if the Spartans can make Spartan Stadium great again. With UCLA, Michigan, and Penn State all coming to East Lansing, there has to be some hope, the place will have energy this year.
USA Today
03-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
MSU QB Aidan Chiles talks expectations, growth during offseason
MSU QB Aidan Chiles talks expectations, growth during offseason Michigan State starting quarterback Aidan Chiles met with the media to discuss expectations, growth as a leader and provide an overall spring practice update It's a massive spring for Aidan Chiles as he looks to improve upon his first year as the Spartans' starting quarterback and get Michigan State football back to its winning ways. Michigan State is in the midst of spring practice, with the Spartans about halfway through the campaign. The Spartans have elected to keep everything behind closed doors this spring and not offering much up for the fans to see. That includes not holding its annual spring game / open practice at the end of the spring season. But one thing we have gotten here and there is media availability with the players and coaches. That included Chiles on Tuesday, who took questions during a media session. Hear what Chiles had to say during his media availability, with our summary notes and the full video below. Notes Chiles talked about his growth during spring practice and the offseason, especially in becoming a better leader for the Spartans Chiles discussed expectations and what he puts on himself as becoming a better leader Chiles talked about practicing outside throughout the spring and how it'll help prepare the team for similar cold weather games in the fall Chiles said there is no ceiling for this team, and has high expectations for what this team can achieve Chiles talked about not making a bowl game last year and how it has served as extra motivation to not feel that kind of disappointment again this next year Chiles discussed the new strong wide receivers group, and stated "everyone" can be a No. 1 guy for the Spartans Chiles talked about the importance of mastering the basics of being a quarterback and not taking anything lightly Chiles said he likes what he's seeing from the offensive line so far this spring and what the run game could be if it continues to progress Chiles discussed how the path forward to success is more clear now after going through last season, and making sure they execute better in the key areas like the redzone this season Chiles talked about the rest of the quarterbacks room and what he likes about Alessio Milivojevic and Leo Hannan thus far in the spring Full Video This video was courtesy of Spartan Mag Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
