A year ago, Aidan Chiles joined the Michigan State football program along with a couple of first-year quarterbacks as well as veteran passer Tommy Schuster.
But Schuster was never quite at the level to push Chiles to be better. There was never really a worry that the new Spartan QB1 would lose his job. The threat of having a capable backup never truly weighed on Chiles, but that's going to change this year -- and Michigan State football will benefit from it.
There's been a rapid-riser in the quarterback room. His name is Alessio Milivojevic.
The redshirt freshman appeared in just one game last year, throwing a pick in his only pass attempt during the 2024 season against Rutgers. But if you've listened to the coaching staff over the first few weeks of fall camp, it sounds like Milivojevic has taken a major step in the right direction. According to Jonathan Smith, Milivojevic is "pushing" Chiles.
That quote might be alarming to a lot of fans who are expecting big things from Chiles this season, but it's nothing more than praise for the backup quarterback. It's also a good sign that the backup isn't just sitting there, content with holding a clipboard. Milivojevic is preparing to be Chiles' eventual replacement in a year or two.
To me, this is the best-case scenario. The Spartans now have another capable backup and with Milivojevic improving, that's going to force Chiles to be on top of his game.
Quarterback play this season is going to be vastly improved and it's because the room, as a whole, has gotten better this offseason and they're pushing each other.
Chiles needed a push, and he got it.