College football’s biggest throws of the week: Aidan Chiles’ bazooka launch, NIU’s only TD of Notre Dame win

We’re detailing the biggest throws on a weekly basis, giving extra attention to huge throws that quarterbacks make all around the country.

We start by looking at the pass plays with the most Expected Points Added, and then taking into account difficulty and distance of throw, game situation, and opponent.

Here are the four biggest throws from Week 2 in college football. 

Aidan Chiles (Michigan State): 77-yard TD pass to Nick MarshTrailing 24-17 with 4:22 remaining, Michigan State took over at its own 23-yard line after a Maryland missed field goal. Chiles faked the handoff and let one rip more than 50 yards downfield and hit Marsh, who outran two defenders for the game-tying touchdown.

Chiles had already thrown three picks in this game, but this was a part of him finishing the game 15-for-20, and leading a game-tying touchdown drive and a game-winning field goal drive in the final five minutes.

The Oregon State transfer finished with a career-high 363 passing yards and threw three touchdowns, none bigger than this strike to Marsh. The Spartans lost but it was exactly what fans wanted to see from a player who ranked as the No. 2 transfer QB in the 2024 cycle, especially after Chiles struggled in a tight opening win vs. FAU. 

Cade Klubnik (Clemson) 76-yard TD pass to Bryant Wesco Jr.Facing third-and-11 on the opening drive of the game vs. App State, Klubnik got good blitz protection from his teammates and threw a rope almost 45 yards down the field, hitting Wesco Jr. in stride.

It was the first of nine straight TD drives for Clemson to open the game in a 66-20 route of App State. 

And it was the first of a career-high five TD passes for Klubnik, the longest touchdown pass of his career. Coming off a brutal loss to Georgia that saw the Tigers get held out of the end zone, Saturday evening in Death Valley was the perfect remedy for Klubnik & Co. 

Ethan Hampton (Northern Illinois) 83-yard TD pass to Antario BrownAlready trailing 7-0 on the road against No. 5 Notre Dame, Northern Illinois’ first drive of the game started at its own 2-yard line. The Huskies picked up a first down, on a third-down scramble by Hampton, and were looking at second-and-five from the 17.

Facing pressure right in his face, Hampton delivered a great ball between two defenders to Brown, the running back who had 15 career catches at that point. Brown outran everyone to the end zone to tie the game, setting the tone for the biggest win in school history.

It was the only touchdown of the game for Northern Illinois in a two-point win in South Bend.

Skyler Locklear (UTEP) 65-yard completion to Kam ThomasAfter two early penalties on the opening drive in an eventual loss to FCS Southern Utah, UTEP was looking at third-and-18 from its own 17-yard line. Locklear hung tough and took a hit, but delivered one deep down the sidelines to Thomas, who shook his defender and picked up another 27 yards after the catch.

It led to a touchdown, the first of two consecutive touchdown drives to start the game for UTEP. Locklear started the game 10-for-11, including completing each of his first eight attempts, and finished with 295 yards in his second game after transferring from Austin Peay. 

There’s no public video we can share of the throw, but we watched the video on coaches’ tape and were definitely ‘wow’d by it.