Michigan State football coach Jonathan Smith said QB Aidan Chiles and OG Kristian Phillips are late-week decisions for Saturday's game vs Indiana.
EAST LANSING – Michigan State football heads to Indiana with its season on the brink.
And the Spartans might have to face the red-hot Hoosiers without their starting quarterback.
Coach Jonathan Smith said Aidan Chiles is questionable for the 3:30 p.m. kickoff against No. 3 Indiana on Saturday, Oct. 18, in Bloomington, Indiana.
“Optimistic,” Smith said Monday, Oct. 13. “But we’ll find out at the end of the week.”
That injury update holds for offensive guard Kristian Phillips, who like Chiles got hurt in the third quarter of the Spartans’ 38-13 loss Saturday against UCLA. Tight end Michael Masunas also is a late-week decision after getting injured during the game.
MSU also played the Bruins without defensive end Jalen Thompson, defensive tackle Ben Roberts and safety Nikai Martinez. Smith said those three “have a potential for this weekend, but we’ll see by the end of the week.” None of those are considered long-term injuries, he added.
Chiles left the game with 11:12 left in the third quarter after taking off running away from pressure and spinning through three tackles before absorbing a huge hit from UCLA’s Keanu Williams. The junior quarterback did not return but remained on the sideline in uniform with a towel over his head.
It was the second straight game in which he left due to injury, though he returned during MSU’s 38-27 loss at Nebraska on Oct. 4. Chiles scored the Spartans’ only touchdown Saturday on a 2-yard run but finished 8 of 17 passing for 66 yards. He was sacked once, bringing his season total to 15, which is tied for 25th-most allowed in the Football Bowl Subdivision and fifth-most in the Big Ten this season.
Redshirt freshman Alessio MIlivojevic took over for Chiles and played the rest of the way at quarterback, finishing 8 of 18 for 100 yards with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Nick Marsh early in the fourth quarter.
“I think Alessio got into the game and showed some good signs,” Smith said. “We do have confidence in his capabilities and his preparation.”
Two plays after Chiles got hurt, right guard Phillips suffered an apparent right leg injury and left the game. MSU already is down starting guard Luka Vincic for the rest of the season, and starting left tackle Stanton Ramil is expected to miss at least a few more weeks.
Along with Masunas leaving Saturday’s game, the Spartans also were without fellow tight ends Brennan Parachek and Jayden Savoury. On defense, the secondary was again missing two starters in safety Martinez and nickelback Ade Willis, and they were joined on the sidelines Saturday by starting defensive end Thompson and two key backups in Roberts and linebacker Marcellius Pulliam.
Indiana (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) opened as a 25½-point favorite, and the odds have grown since to make MSU (3-3, 0-3) nearly a four-touchdown underdog while trying to end a three-game losing streak.
Contact Chris Solari: [email protected]. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Aidan Chiles injury update: Michigan State QB questionable vs Indiana
Category: General Sports
