Iowa Football: Northwestern Quarterback Aidan Chiles Will Reportedly Miss Iowa Game

Another Friday, another Friday morning news dump in Iowa athletics. 

But this time it doesn't involve the Hawkeyes. 

Northwestern starting quarterback Aidan Chiles is expected to miss Saturday's game against Iowa, per a report from ESPN's Pete Thamel on Friday. Chiles was listed as questionable on the availability report on Wednesday and Thursday with an undisclosed injury, but Thamel confirmed the Michigan State transfer is currently dealing with an upper body injury, with a timetable for his return unclear at the moment. 

If Chiles indeed can't give it a go on Saturday night, Thamel said that backup Nicco Marchiol would get the start. Marchiol has only thrown one pass for the Wildcats this year (against Ball State on Oct. 10), but he does have seven games of starting experience under his belt at West Virginia, where he played for four seasons before transferring to Northwestern ahead of the 2026 campaign. 

There's no question that Chiles' injury could play a major factor in the outcome of this football game. The fourth-year has been one of the best quarterbacks in the Big Ten this year, throwing for nearly 1,900 passing yards for 13 touchdowns and just one interception. It was also a cool story in college football as well, as Chiles struggled to find any consistency during his previous two-year stint at Michigan State and revitalized his career under offensive coordinator Chip Kelly at Northwestern. 

Thanks in part to Chiles' strong play, the Wildcats have gone from one of the Big Ten's worst offenses to one of the league's best in 2026. Northwestern has posted 33 points per game this year and has impressed college football fans and media members alike for its unique offensive scheme that has featured the old-school Wing-T formation and even wide receivers lining up 10-15 yards behind the line of scrimmage. 

Losing Chiles at the controls will certainly be a tough loss for the Wildcats, but it does still create another wrinkle for Iowa and defensive coordinator Phil Parker. The Hawkeyes probably haven't seen much, if any, film on Marchiol, so whatever scheme they had crafted for Chiles will likely change because Marchiol has a completely different play style.

While Chiles was known for making plays outside the pocket, Marchiol is known as a pocket passer and prefers to stand in the pocket and use his strong arm to make plays. Though CFB Saturdays.com praised the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Marchiol for his mobility in high school, it's worth mentioning that he suffered a season-ending foot injury last year, so we'll see if that has impacted his mobility. 

But either way, it's hard to see Marchoil bringing the same level of mobility that Chiles brought, so could this mean the Hawkeyes will send more pressure with linebackers Cam Buffington and Jayden Montgomery instead of using them as spies in coverage? We'll soon find out.