We are officially eight weeks from Northwestern football’s season opener against South Dakota State, and InsideNU is commemorating the occasion with the first edition of our position preview series. Each week, we’ll break down a different position group and what to expect from them heading into David Braun’s fourth season at the helm. We’ll kick the series off with a quarterback room that received a huge overhaul with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly’s arrival.
Returners: Ryan Boe (R-So), Marcus Romain (R-Fr), Sean Winton (R-So), Gavin Frakes (Gr), Aidan Gray (R-Jr)
Losses: Preston Stone (graduated)
Newcomers: Nicco Marchiol (transfer from West Virginia), Aidan Chiles (transfer from Michigan State), Johnny O’Brien (true first-year)
Northwestern’s offseason activity has been characterized by a complete overhaul of the offense. By hiring legendary ex-Oregon coach Chip Kelly as the offensive coordinator, the Wildcats are aiming to revitalize an air offense that averaged the fourth-lowest passing yards per game in the Big Ten. The key to improving a struggling, often turgid air offense was grabbing former Michigan State starter Aidan Chiles out of the transfer portal.