Michigan State opener vs. FAU delayed due to thunderstorms, inclement weather

The beginning of the Jonathan Smith Era at Michigan State is on pause, as thunderstorms rolled in and put the kibosh on a scheduled 7:00 p.m. EST kickoff against FAU. Gates will open later and a new kickoff time has been announced.

Michigan State and Florida Atlantic will now kick off at 7:10 p.m. ET, the Spartans announced. That will be a 10-minute delay from the original start time.

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Because lightning was detected in the area, there will have to be at least a 30 minute pause until the teams can retake the field and play. That clock resets every time more lightning is detected.

Thunderstorms began rolling into the mid-Michigan region shortly after 5 p.m., dampening pregame festivities — literally — and throwing the start time for Friday’s contest into flux.

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Friday’s game will be the first contest for Smith, who was hired as Michigan State’s head coach following the 2023 season.

Michigan State will debut an exciting, young quarterback on Friday

Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles is all-in on himself entering his first season starting in college football.

A reporter asked Chiles about setting the tone for himself and their season in their opener next week during a session on Thursday. In his answer, he shared the belief in what’s to come for him by replying with an interesting line with some gambling advice to any bettors out there looking at his lines and odds.

“Like I said before, if you bet, take the over,” Chiles said to the media.

That’s quite the statement from the Spartans’ quarterback. For one, it’s a lot of confidence as he enters just his sophomore season after appearing in nine games at his first school last season. For two, sports betting can be a touchier subject at the collegiate level lately, especially when it involves current players.

Still, those in East Lansing have to love to hear that from Chiles coming into kickoff in 2024.

As for his actual statistics so far, Chiles went 24-35 (68.6%) for four touchdowns and no interceptions as a freshman at Oregon State. He also had a trio of scores on the ground for the Beavers to give him seven total on the year. He was just the backup in Corvallis, though, behind DJ Uiagalelei.