Aidan Chiles throws for TD in debut as Northwestern rallies past FCS South Dakota State 34-18

EVANSTON, Ill. -- — Aidan Chiles threw for 273 yards and a touchdown in his debut, and Northwestern pulled away late to top FCS South Dakota State 34-18 on Saturday night.

Chiles, who made 20 starts for Michigan State before joining the Wildcats during the offseason, made it a two-possession game with a 14-yard draw-play touchdown with 4:34 to go.

South Dakota State’s (1-1) Josiah Johnson scored with 8:16 left to cut the lead to 20-18, but a two-point try failed. Northwestern took the kickoff and burned off almost four minutes before Chiles scored.

“We got where we needed to get and did what we needed to do at the end,” Chiles said.

Joseph Himon II (four carries, 87 yards) took off for an 80-yard touchdown run with 1:14 left to widen the final score.

The Wildcats’ defense gave up 438 yards but kept the Jackrabbits out of the end zone on six of seven trips inside their 25-yard line.

“I thought we came up with a great plan and executed it well,” Northwestern coach David Braun said. “We found a way not to break, and that was the difference in the game.”

Chiles hit Griffin Wilde with a 71-yard pass on his first play from scrimmage, then found Alex Honing with an 11-yard touchdown pass less than four minutes into the game to give the hosts a lead they never lost.

Caleb Komolafe had a short touchdown run midway through the third quarter for the Wildcats, who’ve won four straight home openers.

Chase Mason was 23 for 48 for 285 yards with an interception for the Jackrabbits. Johnson had 79 yards on 19 carries and Tristan Alvano had four field goals.

South Dakota State drove deep into Northwestern territory twice in the second quarter but had to settle for a pair of Alvano field goals and trailed 10-6 at intermission.

“Too many missed opportunities,” Jackrabbits coach Dan Jackson said. “I thought we had opportunities to really punch some things in when we had the ball in the red zone and make a statement, but we didn’t do it.”

The Takeaway

South Dakota State: Give Northwestern’s defense credit, but the Jackrabbits had seven drives deep into the hosts’ territory but came away with just one touchdown. The loss left the program 2-12 against FBS opponents.

Northwestern: Former Oregon and NFL coach Chip Kelly is the new offensive coordinator, and his unit amassed almost 500 yards Saturday night. The Wildcats have just one more game to keep fine-tuning before a Sept. 25 trip to reigning national champion Indiana.

Scary Moment

The game was delayed several minutes early in the third quarter after Northwestern offensive lineman Jackson Carsello appeared to take a teammate’s knee to his helmet at the end of a play. The 6-foot-4, 300-pound Carsello was fitted with a head-and-neck stabilizer and placed on a stretcher, but appeared conscious and repeatedly gave a thumbs-up sign as he was taken off the field.

Braun did not update Carsello’s condition after the game, but said the player was in “good spirits.”

Up next

The Jackrabbits host New Haven on Sept. 12.

The Wildcats get an early bye next weekend and welcome Colorado on Sept. 19.

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