‘Chad Powers’ Season 1 Recap: How Russ Holliday’s Football Comeback Fell Apart in the Most Chaotic Way Possible

Glen Powell’s sports comedy took football fans on a wild ride this fall, and now that the dust has settled, it’s worth looking back at exactly how everything unraveled. ‘Chad Powers‘ wrapped its first season on October 28, 2025 with an explosive cliffhanger that left viewers with major unanswered questions. With season two now on the horizon, this recap breaks down every twist that got us here.

The premise alone made ‘Chad Powers’ one of the most talked about sports comedies of the year. The series stars Glen Powell in a dual role, playing both Russ Holliday, a talented but self destructive college football player, and Chad Powers, the folksy alter ego Russ invents to sneak back onto a football field.

Russ Holliday’s Rise and Spectacular Fall

Before there was Chad, there was Russ, and his downfall is where the whole story begins. The season opens with Russ Holliday at the peak of his college career, only to watch it collapse in an instant, shown at the height of his run during the fourth quarter of the Rose Bowl, appearing ready to score the winning touchdown before he celebrates too early and drops the ball short of the end zone.

That single moment sent his entire life spiraling. In the National Championship, Holliday dropped the ball before hitting the endzone, lost the game, tackled a Make-a-Wish kid, and fully crashed out. Once a promising Oregon quarterback, Russ became a national punchline overnight.

Rather than rebuilding quietly, Russ leaned into his worst instincts. A horrible person, the self obsessed quarterback stayed washed up, though his NIL money still let him party, buy one of the most hideous trucks ever made, and completely squander whatever athletic legacy he had. It set up exactly why he needed a new identity to get back on the field at all.

The Chad Powers Disguise Takes Over South Georgia

The heart of the show is Russ transforming himself into someone unrecognizable just to get a second chance. Years after nuking his college football career, Russ attempts to walk on to the struggling South Georgia Catfish program disguised as a young man named Chad Powers.

This concept did not come out of nowhere. The idea expands on an ‘Eli’s Places’ sketch in which Eli Manning wore facial prosthetics to become an unrecognizable football player, and that viral bit became the backbone of the entire series.

Watching the disguise in action was where the show found its comedic footing. Russ transformed himself physically and vocally as Chad Powers, and the prosthetics and awkward mannerisms created comedy gold throughout six episodes. Critics agreed the performance carried the show even when the writing wobbled, noting Powell’s ability to stay charming despite playing someone so frequently off putting.

As Chad settled into the Catfish roster, keeping the lie alive became harder by the week. Every practice and every locker room conversation risked exposing Russ underneath the prosthetics, and that tension is what powered most of the season’s plot.

Ricky and the South Georgia Catfish Storyline

No recap of this season is complete without talking about Ricky, the character who became Russ’s emotional anchor throughout the chaos. Perry Mattfeld returns as Ricky for the follow up season, alongside Quentin Plair, Wynn Everett, Frankie A. Rodriguez, and Steve Zahn, who all helped ground the increasingly absurd premise.

Steve Zahn’s coaching presence gave the Catfish storyline some much needed stability. Steve Zahn commanded scenes as the coaching staff lead, and Perry Mattfeld as Ricky was absolutely phenomenal, providing emotional grounding amid the absurdity. Their chemistry with Powell is a big reason fans stuck around even when the plot got messy.

Ricky’s role became even more crucial once the truth started slipping out. Ricky finds out the truth about Chad’s identity, and Russ decides to abandon his team and leave town as the season winds down. That decision briefly threatened to end the whole Catfish experiment before it even got its shot at glory.

Family drama also played a part in bringing Russ back into the fold. After a heart to heart with his father, Russ decides to return for the big game against the Georgia Bulldogs and convinces Ricky to keep his secret, setting up the finale’s biggest gamble.

How the Season 1 Finale Set Up a Cliffhanger

Everything built toward the season finale, and it did not disappoint in terms of stakes. Episode 6, titled ‘6th Quarter,’ aired on Hulu on October 28, 2025, and the finale ends on a shocking cliffhanger with unresolved storylines.

The championship game forced Russ into an impossible position. Russ Holliday faced the championship game moment he needed, the South Georgia Catfish lined up for their final play, and everything hinged on whether his secret identity stayed hidden. Even Eli Manning got in on the fun, with a cameo appearance tying the show back to its viral roots.

By the time the credits rolled, the disguise could not hold forever. In the finale, Chad’s true identity is revealed, but not to everyone, and this reveal sets the course for future episodes. That half reveal is exactly the kind of dangling thread that gets a show renewed.

Glen Powell has made clear this was never meant to be a one and done story. He told The Hollywood Reporter there is plenty more of Russ and Chad’s story to explore, adding there was a construction early on for an arc of what the Catfish would look like, with a beginning, middle and end in mind.

What Comes Next For Chad and The Catfish?

The good news for anyone left hanging by that finale is confirmation the story continues. The new season premieres on September 3, 2026, with all episodes dropping at once, and like the first season, season two has six episodes.

Most of the people who made the first run work are sticking around for round two. Hulu has confirmed Powell, Perry Mattfeld, Quentin Plair, Wynn Everett, Frankie A. Rodriguez, and Steve Zahn as the returning principal cast, with Colin Woodell, Gillian Jacobs, Carey O’Donnell, and Nate Varrone joining as guest stars.

Behind the scenes, the creative engine driving the show has not changed either. ‘Chad Powers’ is co created by Powell and showrunner Michael Waldron, with Eli Manning and Peyton Manning among the executive producers. Waldron has even floated the idea of stretching this story out even further, with reports noting he and Powell have discussed three seasons total to fully close out Russ and Chad’s saga.

Given how divisive the tone of season one turned out to be among critics, with some calling it ‘less than Ted Lasso’ and others praising Powell’s willingness to play someone genuinely unlikeable, the pressure is on for season two to justify all that cliffhanger tension. With Chad’s secret now half exposed and the Catfish’s future on the line, how do you think Russ should handle the fallout once everyone finds out who he really is?