ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - Despite a 0-10 record last season, the Florin Panthers have the heart to turn things around, head coach Dan Davis said. 

Davis’ squad doesn’t have the privilege of having many players on both sides of the ball, Davis said, which as a result means conditioning is important for the Panthers. 

“They put their hand in the dirt and go and they answer the call,” Davis said. “They look like they die but they don’t stop.”

Team Strengths: With all the conditioning they do, the Panthers do not shy away, as Davis said the biggest thing this team brings to the table is its work ethic. 

“We’re small in numbers, but they definitely will work hard,” Davis said. “They do anything at practice; they don’t know how to quit.”

Team Unknowns: After losing a three-year starter at quarterback, a big question mark for the Panthers will be finding who will fill that spot. 

“We have two guys that are trying for the position and they’re battling,” Davis said. “They’re put under pressure every practice like it’s a game scenario, and we push them as hard as we can, but they’re coming along learning to the offense and they’re not giving up.” 

The two players fighting for that spot are Jereme Lawton and Kevin Chea, and Davis said at the time of publication it’s neck and neck to see who will be the starter. 

“If we have a 20-minute offensive period, they get 10 minutes each,” Davis said. “We rotate them so we can see how they function.” 

Overall outlook: The biggest thing that Davis wants out of his team this season is to see them finish what they started, he said. 

“They started their commitment as a family, and we believe in that,” Davis said. 

“We’re trying to have each other’s back and we want to finish every game with our head held high, and no matter what the outcome is, we want opposing teams to say, ‘Holy smokes, Florin just didn’t give up,’” Davis said. 

Schedule: The layout of the preseason schedule for the Panthers came down to which opponent would lead to competitive games for both squads, Davis said. 

“We definitely went out and looked for games that would be competitive,” Davis said. “We want games that are gonna go right down to the final whistle and that would draw a good game out of it.”

The Greater Sacramento League has added three new teams into the mix with Fairfield, Armijo and Burbank, which brings concern to Davis and the Panthers.

“Those are strong offensive and defensive teams, they have size and speed so we’re kind of concerned about that, but we’ll definitely be trying to push ourselves to get that going,” Davis said. “That’s why preseason is competitive so we can build some momentum to get into league.”

The Panthers' pre-season begins Aug. 30 when they go to Merced to take on the El Capitan Gauchos.

*=Greater Sacramento League

8/30 @ El Capitan

9/6 @ WSCA

9/13 @ Riverbank

9/20 @ Valley*

9/27 @ Foothill* 

10/4 vs. Burbank*

10/11 vs. Johnson* 

10/18 @ Fairfield* 

10/25 Armijo*

11/1 vs. Big Valley Christian