Chatham was arguably Morris County’s surprise team of 2024.
The Cougars will not be doing that to anyone in 2025 – thanks to a defense led by linebackers Hunter Bigham and Caden Gabriele.
Both are back and the Cougars figure to be in the thick of things this fall.
Early last season, the Cougars opened a lot of eyes with a win over a Mount Olive team that returned the guts of a sectional champion.
By season’s end, coach Evan Picariello’s team finished 7-3, including a road playoff win at Wayne Valley.
This fall, Chatham should field one of the area’s best defenses thanks to:
- Bigham, who was all over the field for the sectional semifinalist Cougars with 89 tackles, 4 ½ sacks, and 10 tackles for loss.
- Gabriele, who had 53 tackles, one sack, and eight tackles for loss. He also forced two fumbles, had four INTs, and returned an INT for a touchdown.Â
Here are some other defensive players to watch in the Morris-Sussex area:
Tommy Borgia, DL, West Morris – The Princeton-bound Borgia will be entering his fourth year as a starter for the formidable Wolfpack and keeps getting better and better, as evidenced by his 92 tackles, including 21 for loss, and 10 sacks last year.
Luke Gouse, DL, West Morris – Gouse was very impactful for the Wolfpack as he had a sack and six tackles for loss among his 45 tackles.
Timmy Weidman, DL, Morris Knolls – Weidman (38 tackles, two forced fumbles, one sack, eight tackles for loss) was a beast up front for the Golden Eagles, who swept through the stacked SFC Liberty White undefeated.
Dante Palladino, DL, Montville – The Mustangs advanced to the sectional semifinals and Palladino was a dominant force up front with almost half of his 57 tackles for a loss. He had nine sacks and 19 tackles for loss, forced a fumble, recovered two, and returned a fumble for a touchdown.
Emmett Caughey, DL, Delbarton – The Green Wave received a big year out of Caughey in the United White as he had a sack, four tackles for loss, 24 tackles and two fumble recoveries.
Jahaziel Torres, DL, Morristown – The Colonials are expecting big things out of Torres, who had a strong junior season where he had 27 tackles, including four for a loss, and a sack.
James Giammanco, DL, Mount Olive – The physical Giammanco couldn’t be stopped up front and helped lead the Marauders with 70 tackles, including 6 ½ sacks, and 18 behind the line. He also had two forced fumbles, recovered two, and blocked two kicks.
Ralph Langone, DL, Mendham – The Minutemen won their first divisional title in 20 years and Langone was a big reason with 71 total tackles, including 12 for loss and 4 ½ sacks. He also caused a fumble.
Max Minervini, DL, Morris Knolls – Minervini (50 tackles, two safeties, seven tackles for loss last year) will combine with Weidman to give the Golden Eagles one of the area’s top defensive lines.
Holden Gillespie, DL, Mountain Lakes – Gillespie was almost unblockable at times and commanded double teams but still had 60 tackles, including two sacks and 12 behind the line.
Laz Lima, DL, Whippany Park – Lima was a handful up front last year, when he had three sacks and five tackles for loss among his 43 tackles.
Anthony Agnoli, DL, Montville – Agnoli was one of the anchors up front for the Mustangs, with 36 tackles, six of them for a loss, and one sack.
Azaad Parks, DL, Hanover Park – Parks (38 tackles, 6 sacks, 3 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble, 2 fumble recoveries) was a handful for opposing offenses and was one of the top defenders on one of the best Hornet teams in school history.
Shawn Baumann, DL, Pope John – Baumann (60 tackles, 4 ½ sacks, 11 ½ tackles for loss) often ran wild in the trenches last year.
Remy Lighty, DL, Jefferson – The Falcons struggled for much of the year but Lighty (48 tackles, eight sacks, 21 tackles for loss) was a major factor up front.
Nick Kurilko, LB, Newton – The Braves figure to be one of Sussex County’s best teams and Kurilko should be one of the best linebackers around. He had 70 tackles (13 for loss) and a sack last year.
Evan Cotter, LB, Newton – Cotter was all over the field for the Braves last year as a freshman as he had 57 tackles (two for loss) and returned an interception for a touchdown.
Kirin Kiesel, LB, Kinnelon – Kiesel was a handful for the Colts last year as he had 47 tackles (eight for loss), seven sacks, a forced fumble and recovered two fumbles.
Gavin Mericle, LB, Sussex Tech – Mericle made his presence felt all over the field last year, as he had 73 solo tackles (five sacks) and had two interceptions.
Travis Barlow, LB, Wallkill Valley – Wallkill tied for the divisional crown with Boonton and Barlow (30 tackles, four for loss) was very impactful.
Jack Bronico, LB, Mountain Lakes – The Herd reached the sectional finals after an injury-plagued season and Bronico was a big factor with 41 tackles, including four sacks and 5 ½ tackles for loss. His dad is a longtime coach at Whippany, P-Burg, and Mountain Lakes.
James Doehner, LB, Madison – Doehner was an active member of the Dodgers defense last fall, when he registered 3 ½ sacks and 2 ½ tackles for loss among his 37 tackles and helped spearhead a dynamic defense during the team’s stretch run to the playoffs after an 0-3 start.
Michael Sclafani, LB, Delbarton – Sclafani (60 tackles, two tackles for loss, one fumble recovery) was one of the best linebackers in the stacked SFC-White Division, one of the best in all of New Jersey.
Peyton Kibburz, LB, Butler – The Bulldogs played strong defense on the way to winning both the NJIC and North 1, Group I crown thanks to the work up front of Kibburz, who had four sacks and five tackles for loss among his 50 tackles.
Tommy Henehan, LB, Butler – Henehan was a big contributor to Butler’s successful 2024 season with a sack and four tackles for loss.
Braeydon Longo, LB, Mount Olive – Longo provided some big plays for the sectional semifinalist Marauders with two INTs – and both were returned for touchdowns. He also forced two fumbles and had 31 tackles.
Anthony Evaristo, LB, Morris Knolls – Evaristo burst onto the scene as a sophomore and was a big factor with a sack and eight tackles for loss among his 52 tackles.
Sam Conetta, LB, Pope John – The Lions were solid up front on defense throughout the year and Conetta (91 tackles, two and a half sacks, 10 tackles for loss) was very disruptive.
R.J. Fardo, LB, Montville – Fardo had a whopping 97 tackles for the Mustangs, including 11 tackles for loss. Liberty Blue opponents will have their hands full with Fardo this fall.
Luke Shivas, LB, Morris Knolls – Knolls’ defense was dynamic for most of last year and Shivas (54 tackles, four for loss, one sack, one INT) was right in the thick of things.
Giovoughni Dureny, LB, High Point – Dereny (42 tackles, 3 ½ sacks, 6 1.2 tackles behind the line) was a menace to opposing offenses last year.
Jake Brough, LB, Morristown – The Colonials are making inroads in the SFC-Liberty White and Brough (47 tackles, nine for loss, three sacks) will be one of the headliners of the defense.
Brady Morais, LB, Morristown-Beard – The Crimson play an independent schedule and will look to Morais (81 tackles, two sacks, five tackles for loss) to dominate the way he did for much of last year.
Phoenix LaCorte, LB, Boonton – The Bombers won their league and LaCorte was one of the lynchpins of the defense with 63 tackles (four for loss) as well as two fumble recoveries.
Chaz Cusimano, DB, Delbarton – Not many guys can start for a powerhouse program like Delbarton as a mere freshman but that is how good Cusimano is. And he kept up his end of the bargain by grabbing four INTS to go with his 33 tackles.
Nico Malgieri, DB, Hanover Park – Malgieri helped the Hornets thwart opposing passing games with 57 tackles, five sacks and six tackles for loss last year.
Josiah Chaplan, DB, Boonton – Chaplan manned the secondary and had three interceptions for the Bombers. He was also in on 47 tackles and had a sack and three tackles for loss.
Justin Bullock, DB, Mount Olive – Bullock was a big factor for the Marauders last year with 40 tackles, an interception, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.
Jaylin Jones, DB, Morris Knolls – Jones made one of the biggest plays of the season in 2024 when he intercepted a pass to close out the game (one of his three on the season) in a wild 27-26 win at West Morris.
Roman Deconcillis, DB, Mountain Lakes – Deconsillis was all over the field for the Herd and contributed 43 tackles last year, including two sacks and three and a half sacks.
Liam Melvin, DB, Madison – Melvin figures to hold down the secondary this year after a junior year in which he had two interceptions and 38 tackles (including 1 ½ tackles for loss).
Lucas Zuravnsky, DB, Morris Knolls – Zuravnsky was a lot like Evaristo at Knolls and was a big factor in his first year on varsity as a sophomore with 67 tackles, including a sack and 10 tackles for loss. He also had an interception.
Akei Griffin, DB, Pope John – The Lions played brilliantly in the playoffs and Griffin (76 tackles) was a key factor.
Brendan Lehman, DB, High Point – Lehman led the Wildcats with three INTs and also contributed 54 tackles last year.Niko Martinez, DB, Kittatinny – Martinez was the Cougars leading tackler with 77 tackles (one for loss) and a pair of fumble recoveries.
