We have a lot to get to today, including Aidan Chiles, Alan Haller, the future of NIL at Michigan State, how MSU is attacking the transfer portal, which young players are stepping up, what the Jace Clarizio decommitment tells us about MSU, why the Smith/Dantonio year one comparison isn’t as fair as it seems, upcoming Spartan Stadium upgrades, and more.
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Aidan Chiles took the podium Saturday night after the Michigan State 41-14 loss to Rutgers, where he was asked a two-part question from Jack Ebling. The first part of the question focused on the difference between the first drive that went 75 yards for a TD and the offensive struggles for the rest of the game; the second part of the question asked Chiles what he would say to fans that are wondering about the future of this group of players.
That's what teed up his answer that has been heard around the world (you can see it in its entirety on my X (Twitter) account right here):
His answer has been analyzed ad nauseum and either praised or panned, depending on the perspective of the listener.
All I can tell you is what I thought when I heard it live.
My first thought was, come again? Did he just say what I thought he said? Then he was smiling a little bit, so I wasn’t sure to what extent he was joking.
Then he started to answer the first part of Ebling’s question – then he circled back to the second part. At first, I was thinking that I should ask him a follow up question – did you really mean what you said about the fans – but then as he continued his answers, he fleshed his thoughts out a bit more.
I am not an expert in this field, but I do have some pertinent experience. In addition to Spartans Illustrated, I work in the public relations field, and therefore work with the media from the other side of the microphone. I have worked with department executives on how to answer media questions, including what to do and what not to do. In addition, I have four boys, ages 22, 20, 17, 14 and they all play sports. While none of them have ever had to answer media questions after a win, loss, or draw (they all play soccer), I have listened many times as my teenagers try to explain things to me after I have asked them questions. In addition, I've been around MSU players of this age since I started doing this in 2011. After looking into it further today, I have a feel as to what was actually going on in Chiles’ head at the time – and what he was trying to say, albeit inadequately.
Chiles did not follow the typically advised route when answering Ebling’s question, that’s for sure. Rule #1 – don’t insult your stakeholders or tell them you don’t care about them. Back to the press room Saturday night -- Chiles had just finished playing a bone-chilling game in front of maybe 15,000 fans to start (definitely less than 2,000 at the end) and was frustrated. It was very, very cold out there, especially with the wind chill. Some of the issues were his (errant passes) but a lot of the issues were the players surrounding him. This had become a pattern as well over the last half of the season.
Chiles was the third player (and the last before Jonathan Smith) to take to the mic in the press room. The tone in the locker room from which he just came was 100% “we feel sorry for the seniors – but we are going to fix this.” There were players stepping up and speaking, saying “this is not the way.” Many of the players in that locker room who are all in on this Spartan program were more comfortable calling out the issues and saying it out loud now that the season was over.
The comments were pointed.
“There are some loser behaviors in here.”
When he got to the microphone, all of this was swirling in Chiles' head -- and it is clear that he most definitely could have worded it better; but I think he was bringing the vibe of the locker room with him and wanted to explain that to the public.
He knows that it’s harder to get players to play for a team these days. He witnessed it firsthand this season. In the locker room, it wasn’t just him – other players were showing leadership as well, including Jack Velling, Ryan Eckley, Nick Marsh, Semaj Bridgeman, Jordan Hall, and more.
In the locker room, when Jonathan Smith was discussing what it will take to fix this, the room was not filled with players staring at the carpet. They were attentive and nodding. There was a resolve. The players who were leading in that room Saturday night know high level football, and they know MSU is closer than the fans think – but they also know that the final scores don’t indicate that because of the trenches.
MSU was crushed in the offensive and defensive lines.
So, when Chiles stepped up to the mic, the last thing on his mind was the fans -- but he should have answered the question differently.
A better way to say it might have gone something along the lines of: “I can’t concern myself with the opinions of the fans – all I can do is draw a line in the sand for the people in that locker room and ask who is with me. Who is going to stick around and keep a winner mentality and do the hard work to be successful.”
Chiles is a 19-year old who just finished his first season at the helm of a team. He’s still learning what it means to be a captain. He said at other times in his press conference that he is done trying to simply be liked by the players – he knows that to be successful, a captain needs to tell the truth, even if it is harsh.
For those who listened beyond the tight soundbite, they would have heard more of what he meant:
“You can say I suck, I don’t care about that anymore. I’m going to work harder.”
“Coming in next year, I think we’ll have a different mentality, a different team.”
“You just have to weed the guys out that don’t benefit the team.”
He could have started out his answers more smoothly, yes, but – if you watch the entirety of his press conference – you’ll see a common theme that emerged: he’s going to do what it takes to make sure this team is successful, whether that means improving himself or doing what it takes to make sure that he is surrounded by players with similar attitudes.
When Jonathan Smith got to the mic after Chiles, his words were that of a polished coach with decades of life experience separating his own exploits as a quarterback in Chiles' position and his current role of rebuilding another football program from the ashes.
He answered questions in coach speak, a little too much coach speak for my liking. He was given the opportunity to explain in detail why fans should believe in his process as much as he does. His answers were platitudes.
I understand why. He is making the calculated decision that his non-answers in the media are worth more to the culture he is building than a detailed breakdown of how he is going to go about fixing it.
It’s the safe route – but is it a route that will work?
That will be determined very soon.
What seems clear to me, though, is that Smith has a much tougher rebuild in front of him than Mark Dantonio did back in 2006. I think everyone has forgotten that there were 13 NFL players on Mark Dantonio’s first roster – MSU might only hear one name called in this year's draft (Jordan Turner). Dantonio’s scout team quarterback was Kirk Cousins, his tailbacks were Jehuu Caulcrick and Javon Ringer. He had disrupting players on the team.
Simply put, even after putting in a ton of work as quickly as they could, Smith and his staff still do not have the horses they need. It became evident throughout the season that many of the players either didn’t have the skills needed, had poor attitudes, or were young and simply needed more time in the program.
After speaking with sources all day Sunday, I have a better view as to how Smith and his team are going to attempt to fix these issues.
