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FORT MYERS — Last season when the Cypress Lake Panthers traveled to Riverdale to open their season, the deck was stacked against them.

This year, the Panthers’ hand looks a whole lot different.

For starters, Cypress Lake had just three weeks to get acclimated to coach Chris Hall last season; this summer, the Panthers attended a series of position camps.

And, of course, quarterback Christian Parsons is back for his senior season with all of his weapons. Don’t forget, the Panthers are going to want revenge for last year’s 21-13 loss.

But don’t count out the Raiders, who, like Cypress, finished 3-7 and no doubt feel like they has something to prove.

The Raiders have a returning quarterback in junior Nathan Gahafer and a distinct size advantage in the trenches.

“We’re going to Riverdale and they lost to Port Charlotte in the preseason game, but we can’t overlook them,” Hall said. “They are huge and very physical. What’s different about us is we’re going to try and confuse people, because with their blocking we’re not gonna beat people one-on-one.”

Cypress is still a smaller team, but Hall is hoping his defense can hold out so there isn’t so much pressure on Parsons to shoulder the load. After retooling some personnel and switching to a defensive front that allows for some variation based on what the offense shows, Hall thinks that beginning with Riverdale, the Panthers can hold their own on the field and win more battles — particularly in short-yardage situations.

“They have a good running back in Garrett Greenwell that we have to stop on third and fourth-and-ones,” Hall said. “They can’t wear us down, we have to stop their run, and we have to run it ourselves, get a lead and use the clock to shorten the game. If we throw an incomplete pass on first down we put ourselves in the hole, so we have to run it.”

If springing steady runner Savon Seward and keeping Parsons upright is the key, then the burden falls on Cypress’ offensive line. Though a small unit in numbers, the players have put on some size over last season’s squad, and line coach Tim Copeland expects that to make a difference.

“We tell them that they need to get off the ball, stay low, and we know it’s a priority to establish the run,” he said. “We’ve been putting in a lot of individual work, these guys are good with their hands, and we’ve been doing a lot of slug-work.”

With all the pieces in place, Cypress is primed to get its season started off on the right foot, and take a little vengeance in the process.

“Riverdale is thick and they get after it,” Hall said. “We just can’t turn the ball over.”