EASTON - Graduation yielded plenty of losses to Easton's outstanding football team of a year ago, and not one person on either side of the field thought that the Red Rovers were facing a 'down season' in 2015.

After a stellar offensive outing by the hosts, the new group of talent at Easton can say they are 1-0, following a 43-13 Eastern Pennsylvania Conference win over Pleasant Valley."There's always kids in this town that are anxious to get their shot," Easton head football coach Steve Shiffert said afterward. "We're fortunate to be in a community where kids will wait their turn and when they get their turn, they take advantage of it."Pleasant Valley head coach Dave Pacchioini echoed the high regard for the fairly new Rovers, saying, "Easton is Easton. No matter how many people they lose, they're coming back and it starts down in the feeder programs. That's just who they are. They're a top-notch program and they showed that tonight."The Bears trailed by 16 at the intermission and still had a reasonable shot in the contest. However, that's when the winners utilized a crushing blow in the third frame.The Red Rovers started out the second half with an 11-play drive, spanning 80 yards and senior running back Nysir Minney-Gratz slipped in from the eight to make the game 29-7 with six and a half left.Two plays later, the Bears suffered a blow when senior defensive back Nathan Moser skied for an interception to take the possession back and set up another Minney-Gratz score, as he got loose and raced 59 yards to balloon the advantage to 36-7."That took the wind out of our sails a bit there, and you can't give up the big plays like that," Pacchioni added. "I thought after the first half that we had momentum with our two interceptions, but you just can't give up those plays."The Bears didn't quit, as they responded immediately with their biggest possession of the night, as they put together a 8:30 drive that went 78 yards and ended when Mike Mitchell scampered in from the two. That made it 36-13 with eight minutes left and the damage seemed to be too insurmountable to overcome."I think the kids did a really good job of controlling the game, for the most part," Shiffert stated. "I think we slipped up at times in the first half and in the second, but otherwise, I think the kids were aggressive, they kept their heads in the game and they did a lot of good things."NOT-SO SPECIAL TEAMS ... Both teams' coaches were disappointed with their special teams in the season opener, as big plays were yielded on both sides of the ball. Easton's Greg Albertson returned a punt 61 yards to open the night's scoring, while the Bears' Justin Richardson had a 85-yard punt return.ROVERS SCORING BIG ... Easton managed to score three times on long plays, as Minney-Gratz darted 59 yards for a second-half score. That run, coupled with the two punt returns made for a contest filled with lots of scoring.POINT PRODUCTION ... The Red Rovers (1-0), put up points in each of the four frames of play in the game, including a 16-point second and a 13-point third.RED ROVER, RED ROVER, LET THERE BE TURNOVERS ... Both teams' QBs gave up at least one pick in the game, as PV's BJ Olaniyan and Daniel Hunter both stole from the cookie jar, while Nathan Moser had a pick and Trevon Mills had a fumble recovery for the winners.REMEMBER KIDS, SAFETY FIRST ... With 6:41 remaining before halftime, the Bears were facing difficulties, as they had a third and 10 from their own two-yard line. When PV quarterback Mikey Brown dropped back to find an open receiver, he had to scramble. However, that's when senior defensive end Daloni Caldwell brought him down for a safety, turning a 14-0 lead into 16-0.