Football Preview: Chatham Cougars vs. West Morris Mendham Minutemen
Chatham hasn't had much luck against West Morris Mendham recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Cougars will venture away from home to take on the Minutemen at 7:00 p.m.
On Saturday, Chatham and Roxbury were almost perfectly matched up, but Chatham suffered a 28-27 loss.
Despite the defeat, Chatham got top-tier performance from Ryan Hogan, who threw for 238 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 75% of his passes, and also rushed for 52 yards and one score. Nick Lagunowich was Hogan's top target, picking up 67 receiving yards, while also punching in one TD on the ground.
Meanwhile, West Morris Mendham had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 22 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Friday. They came out on top against the Knights by a score of 29-21.
West Morris Mendham's win came from a few key players Chatham will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Thomas Guido, who rushed for 83 yards and one touchdown on only six carries. The bulk of those rushing yards came from one huge play: a run that gained an incredible 70 yards. Rocco Racioppi also helped with two scores in total.
West Morris Mendham was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 205 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 205 rushing yards in three consecutive games.
Special teams played a big role in the game for West Morris Mendham, adding 11 points to the final score. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Guido, who ran a punt back for a touchdown.
Chatham's loss dropped their record down to 3-2. As for West Morris Mendham, their record now sits at 4-2.
Chatham might still be hurting after the 28-7 defeat they got from West Morris Mendham when the teams last played back in October of 2024. Can the Cougars avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps