The days of Leavenworth High football being a Sunflower League pushover might be coming to an end.

Leavenworth boasts 19 returning starters and talent at the skill positions. Free State coach Bob Lisher sees a squad with potential.

“They’re a scary team, simply because speed can hurt you regardless,” Lisher said, “and they have a lot of it.”

The Firebirds’ home opener against Leavenworth will kick off at 7 tonight at Free State.

Leavenworth’s offense centers on two players: junior quarterback Judson Cole and sophomore running back Jason Randall.

The Pioneers run most of their offensive plays out of the shotgun formation, meaning Leavenworth coach Kevin Kopecky isn’t afraid to let Cole throw it around.

“He’s got speed and can throw,” Lisher said of Cole. “There’s more than one thing we have to defend against Leavenworth. They’ll throw it everywhere.”

Randall, meanwhile, started for the Pioneers as a true freshman last season.

“He’s really strong, actually, for a sophomore,” Free State junior defensive end/offensive lineman Cody Stanclift said. “He’s pretty big. He’s fast, too.”

Stanclift said he was impressed by the Pioneers’ quickness.

“They probably have more speed than us,” Stanclift said. “The size is about equal, which is kind of a surprise, because we’re a small team for 6A. But if we can contain that speed, we should be able to control the game.”

Leavenworth’s 40-14 loss to Olathe Northwest last week had many similarities to Free State’s season-opening 35-14 loss to Olathe South.

Both Leavenworth and Free State were competitive until the third quarter, when costly mistakes turned close games into routs.

Lisher said he’ll continue to use a two-quarterback system after both his signal-callers experienced some success last week.

Junior Kyle McFarland threw for 82 yards and a touchdown with 55 rushing yards against South; sophomore Joe Dineen, meanwhile, led FSHS with 75 rushing yards to go with 60 passing yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Last year, the Firebirds took an easy 55-7 road victory over the Pioneers.