Things did not begin well for Chatham High School (N.J.) football, as senior quarterback Ryan Hogan threw a 60-yard pick-six to fall into a 6-0 hole with 9:12 left in the first period.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!But Hogan connected with Nicholas Lagunowich on a long touchdown strike to tie the score, followed by a successful extra point to give the Cougars a 7-6 advantage with 8;23 left in the first quarter. Chatham never looked back from there, as it rolled to a 42-12 victory over Randolph last night on the road to kick off the 2026 season.
After New Jersey high school football officials moved up the start time to 5:00 p.m., both teams waited until after 7:00 p.m. to start the game after thunderstorms delayed the festivities. Without the friendly confines of their home turf, the Cougars managed to stay focus to the task at hand, Chatham head coach Evan Picariello noted.
“Obviously, a little bit of a sloppy start,” Picariello said. “We were moving the ball just fine. Obviously, the pick- six occurred, so they got up early. I’m just proud of our guys — our players and coaches — that we were able to withstand the fact that we’ve been here since 2:15, and able to come together and get it done tonight.”
On third and goal, Hogan snuck into the end zone on a one-yard quarterback keeper to push the Cougar lead to 14-6 with 4:17 remaining in the first period.
But the Rams sliced the deficit to 14-12 in early in the second quarter.
However, junior Yuki Stevenson scored on a 30-yard touchdown reception to extend Chatham’s advantage to 21-12 with 4:44 to go in the half.
Hogan added his second rushing TD, a six yarder, of the night to widen the Cougar margin to 28-12 early in the third period.
Hogan enjoyed a stellar game, passing for two TDs and running for two more. Picariello said he admired the way he was able to brush off the interception and went out there and led his team to a big win.
“Ryan’s unbelievable player. He’s a leader, and he’s a competitor,” Picariello said of his signal caller. “So, when he threw that pick, I gave him a hug. I was just like, ‘shake that one off. That one’s gone.’ And then he went back out and just executed exactly what we needed to do offensively.”
Hogan said he took the pickoff in stride, and was able to gain self-composure, as well as the rest of his team.
“(We) faced a lot of adversity,” Hogan said. “Once we got our feet under us, literally and figuratively, we were good.”
Next, junior Charlie Stanley was at the right place time, as the football deflected of a Randolph receiver’s’ supine body and into his waiting hands, for a pick-six and 35-12 lead with less than two minutes left in the third quarter.
Then, sophomore Ryan Gaberiele hit pay dirt on a sweet stutter step running move before finding a gap and bolting for a touchdown to cap Chatham’s scoring with 10;22 to go on the contest.
The Cougars return to Cougar Field for their home opener next Saturday at 1:00 p.m. against West Essex,
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