Indiana football’s new-look secondary faces tough test against Aidan Chiles, Chip Kelly

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Chip Kelly is right back in college football after another coaching stop in the NFL, this time as the offensive coordinator at Northwestern.

Is there a weirder career path than UCLA head coach, Ohio State offensive coordinator, Las Vegas Raiders offensive coordinator and now the Northwestern offensive coordinator? Probably, but that’s weird enough to merit a note.

Kelly is one of the most well known offensive minds in the sport and Indiana has seen him pretty recently. He was on the other end of the Buckeyes’ 38-13 win over the Hoosiers at Ohio Stadium back in Curt Cignetti’s first year in 2024. He won’t be working with the same talent he was then, but he still carved up what was an otherwise pretty stout defense, particularly through the air as quarterback Will Howard completed 22 of his 26 passing attempts, finding seven different receivers in the process.

His offense, as it was in 2024, will prove a difficult matchup for an Indiana defense still finding its way with several new players replacing those of 2025’s roster.

Northwestern scored 34 points against FCS powerhouse South Dakota State in its season opener before upping that with 41 points against Colorado this past Saturday. Kelly’s made the most of the talent he’s working with, namely quarterback Aidan Chiles.

Chiles is, of course, another familiar name for Indiana fans after spending the past two seasons at Michigan State. He joined the Wildcats this offseason and brings the kind of traits at quarterback that Kelly has succeeded with in the past with his arm and his legs.

He’s not a big time runner, but Northwestern has asked him to use his legs to keep plays alive or in short yardage situations when looking to convert on short late downs and to score in the red zone. He’s proven more than capable of doing both, with three rushing touchdowns through just two games for the Wildcats in 2026.

Then there’s wide receiver Griffin Wilde, who led Northwestern in receiving in 2025 with 880 yards and 8 touchdowns after transferring in from South Dakota State. He’s just as if not more dangerous under Kelly, with 8 receptions for 189 yards through two games.

Wilde has pretty good size for the position, standing at about 6’2”. He does a fair amount of his damage on crossing routes in the intermediate area of the field, finding open grass between the numbers for chunk gains. If he isn’t tackled immediately, he’s strong enough and fast enough to pick up further yards after the catch. That’s not his lone strength though, as he’s proven a capable deep option with some athletic catches in 2025.

Then there’s Northwestern’s running backs, who double as its second and fifth leading receivers in 2026 with Caleb Komolafe bringing in five receptions for 64 yards and Joseph Himon II hauling in four for 61 yards and three touchdowns.

All of this is going to challenge an Indiana defense that could be missing a starter at cornerback with A.J. Harris listed as doubtful entering the matchup. Jamari Sharpe, Indiana’s No. 1 option at corner, is back and played against Western Kentucky while Ryland Gandy has filled in for Harris. There’s also safety Preston Zachman entering his first Big Ten game at Indiana.

This is a different secondary than last year, obviously, and Northwestern is going to challenge it in ways that Indiana’s previous opponents just couldn’t. Chiles is going to be able to buy time for his receivers with his legs, Wilde is the best receiver the Hoosiers have seen and the backfield will demand attention in the passing game.

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