New Trier explodes for 44 points and third win — already more than a year ago

Although it’s often said that revenge is a dish best served cold, New Trier football showcased that they prefer retribution with no wait.

New Trier (3-2) bombarded Deerfield (0-5) with an offensive onslaught on Friday, Sept. 26, avenging a 2024 loss to the Warriors with a dominant 44-7 win on homecoming night on Robert Naughton Field. 

The Trevians’ offensive attack hit the Warriors with a first-quarter haymaker, resulting in 23 unanswered points in just over 10 minutes of game time.

And they didn’t slow down from there, taking on two more touchdowns in the second stanza, giving them a commanding 37-0 halftime lead. 

The lopsided win earns New Trier a perfect start to Central Suburban League South play — a strong, but rather unfamiliar position for the Trevians, who prior to Friday night had opened conference play with a victory only once over the last four seasons (a 2022 win over Evanston). 

“It’s important starting out [conference like this],” New Trier head coach Brian Doll said. “They feel confident now going into next week. They also know at this point in time … we’ve won more games now than we did all of last year and we’re only in Week 5, so that’s a step in the right direction.”

The Trevians entered their Week 5 contest against Deerfield with some extra motivation. The playoff-bound 2024 Warriors upset New Trier in the final game of last year’s season, administering the coup de grâce for one of the Trevs’ most disappointing campaigns (2-7) in recent memory. 

“We remembered that,” New Trier senior wide receiver Emmett Koshkarian said. “It was our last game and it left a sour taste in our mouth. Now this year, it’s our first conference game and we knew we could beat them and we knew we could beat them by a lot and we just tried to play our best game.” 

How it happened 

New Trier wasted no time in enacting retaliation as it opened the game with a eight-play, 69-yard touchdown drive. 

The series was capped when quarterback Jackie Ryder tossed a screen pass to junior running back Declan O’Meara that went for an 18-yard touchdown.

After being sidelined last week, O’Meara returned to action with a bang for the Trevs, scoring two early touchdowns. 

The Trevians defense then forced a Deerfield three-and-out, and on the second play of the ensuing series, Ryder fired a perfectly placed 35-yard touchdown pass to sophomore Benjamin Sullivan to put New Trier up 14-0. 

An intentional-grounding penalty against the Warriors deep inside their own red zone resulted in a New Trier safety, and the Trevs kept rolling on the ensuing drive, when O’Meara pounded home a 2-yard touchdown run with just under two minutes to go in the first quarter. 

Sophomore halfback Nikolas Hanold found the end zone, when he finished off a 45-yard, six-play drive to put the Trevs out in front 30-0. 

New Trier’s fourth rushing touchdown of the evening came late in the second quarter courtesy of another junior back, Donsley Lyman, who rushed home a 1-yard score. 

John Fitzgerald, the Trevians’ defensive leader, recovered a Deerfield fumble on the second-half kickoff, setting up New Trier deep in Warriors’ territory. It took only one play for the Trevs to take advantage as Ryder connected with Keefer Baxter for a 23-yard score. 

Deerfield’s only score of the night came in the fourth quarter when quarterback Jack Agran rushed in a 4-yard run to put the Warriors on the board. 

The Trevians’ offense was in prime form Friday, amassing more than 300 yards of total offense. New Trier put up 271 yards in the first two quarters alone. 

Ryder’s 11 completions on the night were good for 221 yards and three touchdown passes. He also rushed for 18 yards. The Trevians removed their starters after the opening drive of the second half. 

The junior gunslinger continues to impress under center for the Trevs. Through five games, Ryder has a total of 13 touchdowns (11 passing, two rushing). 

Ryder has already eclipsed the 1,000 all-purpose yards marker and is nearing 1,000 yards passing as well. But perhaps his most impressive stat thus far is his sparkling 13-0 touchdown-to-interception ratio as he has yet to turn the ball over in his first varsity season.

“I just think his confidence is growing,” Doll said of Ryder. “ … His composure has been super impressive for a first-year starter on a varsity team. I think he’s really special and I think we’re watching a young kid grow here and mature very quickly.” 

New Trier’s top pass-catchers had big nights, as Koshkarian and Baxter hauled in four passes apiece. Baxter led the way with 97 receiving yards, while Koshkarian continued his torrid reception pace. Through Week 5, Koshkarian has a team-high 27 receptions. 

The Trevians defense bounced back in a big way after allowing a season-high 35 points last week. New Trier held Deerfield to just one first down in the first half. 

“We had way better communication this week,” said Anthony Aguilar, a senior captain who had two sacks and two tackles for losses in the first half. “We practiced very hard this week and I think it definitely showed on the field tonight and it feeds our hunger for next week.” 

Maine South looms 

New Trier will be back on its home turf for the third straight week next Friday night as the Trevs host their CSL South nemesis, Maine South. 

The Trevs (3-2) will look to knock off the perennial powerhouse Hawks (4-1) for the first time since 2016.

To do so, they’ll have to control the time of possession and keep the Hawks high-powered offense, led by quarterback Jameson Purcell, off the field, Doll said. New Trier will also need to find some explosiveness of its own, he added. 

The Hawks are up to their usual winning ways thus far, reeling off four-straight wins after dropping their Week 1 showdown with south suburban juggernaut Lincoln-Way East. The Hawks have scored more than 30 points in each of their last four games and have surpassed 40 points three times. Maine South defeated Evanston 33-0 in Week 5. 

But the Trevs are heading into the matchup with more than just hope. 

“If we can play the way we did in the beginning of the game against Fremd, against another great quarterback, we feel that we can put ourselves in a good position to play with a really good football team,” Doll said. 

“I’m happy where we’re at right now; it’s a lot different going into this game than last year,” Doll later added. “We’ve got some things that are working really well for us and I think our throwing attack is about as good as I’ve seen in probably over 10 years.”  

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