SLIPPERY ROCK — It's something that Slippery Rock High football coach Larry Wendereusz said shouldn't be ignored.

But it shouldn't be dwelled on, either.

Sharon is 23-6 against the Rockets in the history of the series. The last time Slippery Rock walked off the field with a win against the Tigers was Oct. 17, 2014.

Twice last season, the two teams met. Both times Sharon came out on top.

“We understand the history,” Wendereusz said. “They've beat us. A lot. They have confidence about playing us.”

But this season, there's a renewed confidence at Slippery Rock, where the Rockets are off to their best start at 3-0 since that 2014 campaign.

And the Rockets want nothing more than to rewrite some of that history against Sharon.

“Every game is a big game,” said senior running back Kaleb Kamerer, who has rushed for 341 yards and six touchdowns already this season. “Each game is super important, but the thing about this one is we have a chip on our shoulder after losing to them twice last year.

“We just go into every game thinking we're the best team no matter what,” Kamerer added. “I think you have to do that. Individually, we think the same, too, that in our one-on-one matchup we're better than the guy in front of us.”

That mentality and a playbook that has opened up in the third year under Wendereusz and his staff has contributed to the hot start so far.

Sharon (2-1), though, provides a serious litmus test for just how far the Rockets have come following back-to-back 4-7 seasons.

The Tigers return several key weapons from a team that went 10-4 and reached the PIAA 3A semifinals.

Junior quarterback Layne Voytik has picked up where his sensational sophomore season left off.

Voytik has completed 51 of 81 for 615 yards and seven touchdowns.

CJ Parchman has become his favorite target with 18 receptions for 347 yards and four scores and senior Jordan Wilson had rushed for 378 yards on 45 carries.

Those Tiger Triplets can be difficult for any team to handle, even a defense like Slippery Rock, which has yielded just 600 yards in three games.

“For us, this is the best team we've played so far this year,” Wendereusz said.

After two seasons of finding its way offensively, Slippery Rock has seemingly hit a new level in the third season.

“We were always on Page 1 of the playbook,” Wendereusz said. “We were never able to take that next step until now. Offense is a lot of rehearsal. Defense is reaction — you just go out and react and we've always been OK with that piece.”

Now, with the playbook opened up, the Rockets' offense is thriving.

Slippery Rock has outscored it opponents 103-32 this year.

“The key thing is what we're trying to do is starting to make sense to them,” Wendereusz said. “I think we're getting there offensively. We still have to get rid of some of the mistakes we've made.”