Pleasant Valley established itself as the top football team in the Poconos last year after beating all five Pocono-area schools during the season.

There were close games against East Stroudsburg South and Stroudsburg, but the Bears went 7-3 in the regular season and earned a trip to the District 11 playoffs for the second straight year.

Head coach Blaec Saeger is ready to go for another season and although Pleasant Valley graduated 20 seniors, Saeger and the Bears are all hands on deck for this upcoming fall.

“We beat every team in Monroe County, so I’ve stressed to these guys all year that we’re going to have a little target on our back,” Saeger said. “Everybody’s going to be gunning for us. We’re a completely different team.

“We only returned three starters on both sides of the ball and lost 20 seniors, so we have a lot to rebuild. With the offseason we had, I feel confident that we’re going to be able to do it. I got a couple of kids that are returning with some experience that we’re going to lean on. With the newly experienced team that we have, it could’ve gone a lot of different ways. We’re pretty pleased with where we are at.”

The Bears have improved during Saeger’s time at Pleasant Valley and every year, his teams have made strides at getting better. The Bears had a good summer practices and a good showing in a scrimmage against Catasauqua, so they are looking to return to the district playoffs.

“Last year was a heck of a year,” Saeger said. “We had a great group of seniors and a lot of leadership. We won some close games. Looking to this year, it was a little interesting in the beginning going back to January. We weren’t sure what we were going to have. We had an incredible offseason. The upcoming seniors have really stepped up and kept the ball rolling a little bit from what last year’s group did. They realize it was their turn. Going through camp was excellent, very positive. At this point, I like what we have and looking forward to the season.”

There will be some tough tests for the Bears with the Lehigh Valley teams, especially right off the bat against Bethlehem Catholic in season opener at home.

Pleasant Valley also faces Northampton and Nazareth later in the season. Don’t sleep on the Bears in these games because PV has all-league quarterback Valentino Byers-Robinson returning for his senior season to take the helm of the Bears offense.

“He’s definitely one of those returners we’re going to lean on that’s going to carry us,” Saeger said. “We only return three, but to have one of them be your all-league quarterback is something to build on. His leadership skills are something we’re going to have to lean on that we didn’t last year. It’s going to be a lot less of just handing it to Fela (Olaniyan) and he’s going to have to step up and I know he will. He’s an incredible athlete and kid and he’s looking forward to having a larger role in the offense, so he’s going to be a gigantic portion of our success or failure.”

Saeger is going to use Byers-Robinson more heavily in the offense this season after graduated running back Fela Olaniyan put up a big year for the Bears last season. The Bears use a triple-option offense and nothing is going to change unless PV needs to throw the ball in certain situations. Saeger also placed heavy emphasis on the defense which was able to hold up for the Bears in some close contests in 2022.

“We’re going to do what works for us,” Saeger said. “We are a triple-option based offense, so we’re always going to run and that’s where we begin. Every year they ask me this question and every year I give the same answer that if we’re good enough to throw and we need to throw, then we’re going to throw. Last year, we weren’t able to complete a lot of passes and there really wasn’t a whole lot of reason to do it. If we’re more successful at it this year, you’ll see it happen more. It’s not something going in saying we’re not going to do it five times. If we can win a game without throwing, we can win a game without throwing. If we have to throw it 20 times, we’ll throw it 20 times. It all that matters is what we’re good at, who we are and what the defense is doing.”

Pleasant Valley graduated 20 seniors and the competition has been fierce for some of the spots.

“In the grand scheme of things, we graduated all three of them as well, so all three are brand-new, but two are seniors and one is a junior and they waited their turn,” Saeger said about the defensive line. “They lifted weights and they’re ready to go.”

There is competition for two spots in the secondary, but Saeger said he might rotate them throughout the season.

“Every position is the same this year,” Saeger said. “Many people thought of it as a rebuilding year. I’m not going to put a name on it. I just know it’s going to be a bunch of tough kids that are going to go to work. I don’t see us struggling as much as some might think with the amount of kids we have to return.”

POSITION BREAKDOWN

QUARTERBACKS

Pleasant Valley will once again utilize Valentino-Byers Robinson as its starting quarterback. Byers-Robinson primarily handed the ball to Fela Olaniyan last year, but Saeger said he’ll use his quarterback more in the offense this year. PV uses a triple-option offense that relies very little on throwing the ball.

RUNNING BACKS

Fullback Alex Ecker moves over to the running back position to replace Olaniyan and is also an all-league linebacker for the team. Saeger expects Ecker, who has more speed than Olaniyan, to be a household name in the Poconos this season.

WIDE RECEIVERS

Pleasant Valley doesn’t throw the ball often. Aaron Haden, Nick Iandoli and Andrew Fishon will be the targets for Valentino Byers-Robinson when they do decide to throw, but more importantly expect the three to be crucial blockers in the running game.

OFFENSIVE LINE

Pleasant Valley is replacing all five starters and its tight end on the offensive line. A.J. Hower, Christian Koehler and Connor Smith are three seniors who have stepped in to fill the voids. T.J. Roberti will also get time on the line after seeing some action last year on a very senior-heavy team.

DEFENSIVE LINE

Junior Nick Marsh is expected to be one of the anchors on the defensive line. Marsh got some playing time last year as a sophomore. Also expected to make an impact is nose-guard Angelo Syracuse.

LINEBACKERS

Ecker returns as an all-league linebacker for the Bears. Junior Aiden Lollis saw a lot of playing time last year and returns to the linebacker core as well. Hunter Scheffner and Aaron Rehrig will join the two returners. The Bears don’t lack physicaility and commitment to the program.

SECONDARY

Senior Blake Walters returns to the safety position for the Bears and Valentino-Byers Robinson will get more playing time on the defensive side of the ball this year as well. There is competition in the two other spots to fill and Saeger said he might rotate them throughout the season. Senior Dakota Lucas and Junior Deytan Ayers are looking to fill one spot and Joe Brustein and Andrew Fishon are competing for the other cornerback position.