Despite a loss in the season opener last week, Free State High football players were thrilled with their offense.

The Firebirds scored 40 points against one of the more experienced defenses in the state, and they are confident it will be a trend for the rest of the year, including their matchup against Shawnee Mission South at 5:30 p.m. today at SM South Stadium.

During the season opener, Free State senior quarterback Dallas Crittenden completed 19 of his 29 passes for a school-record 300 yards, breaking Joe Dineen’s mark of 292 yards against Olathe North in 2013.

He wasn’t the only player to rewrite the record books last week. Senior receiver Zack Sanders set new school records with 13 receptions for 239 yards. The previous yardage record was set in 2002 by Dain Dillingham.

“Honestly, in the games, I don’t know who I’m throwing to, I just throw to who’s open,” Crittenden said. “It just happened to be Zack.”

Crittenden, a transfer from Topeka Hayden, made his first start in a Free State uniform and impressed coaches with his ability to move around in the pocket and keep his eyes downfield.

“We were pretty happy even though we couldn’t pull off a win,” Crittenden said. “We were still pretty satisfied with what we did. But we can still do a lot of things better. We’ll just get better as we go on.”

Along with a strong passing attack, the Firebirds (0-1) showed off their power run game with running backs Zion Bowlin, Jax Dineen and Gage Foster. Both Bowlin and Dineen ran for two touchdowns last week.

“I feel like we all have kind of the same personality as breaking tackles, just getting four yards and if we get a breakaway, that’s awesome,” Dineen said. “All three of us aren’t super fast but we’re all stronger runners.”

The Raiders (0-1) are coached by longtime Free State defensive coordinator Brett Oberzan and the two schools scrimmaged against each other multiple times throughout the summer.

Though both schools are familiar with each other, that doesn’t mean they know completely what to expect.

“You get an idea of what they’re like but everybody changes from then to now,” FSHS coach Bob Lisher said. “They were just doing basic stuff during those scrimmages. You have an idea of personnel-wise, but as far as schemes, you’re really not sure what they are going to do against you. Shawnee Mission West broke out a lot of things that we hadn’t seen and they hadn’t done in the past.”

Mom of the week honored

Free State’s booster club received $1,000 this week from Sport Shake after Angie Skwarlo was selected as PrepsKC’s Mom of the Week.

Skwarlo was nominated by fellow Free State mom Lori Houk in an essay.

“Coaches and weight trainers can only take a team so far,” Houk wrote. “You need a backbone to support your core … and that is Angie. Her energy, passion and commitment drive her to make everything run smoothly so that all the other parents and community can enjoy the ride.”

FSHS probable starters

Offense

LT — Chase Houk, sr.

LG — Jay Dineen, sr.

C — Nathan Spain, jr.

RG — Nico Guier, sr.

RT — Spencer Roe, jr.

QB — Dallas Crittenden, sr.

RB — Zion Bowlin, sr.

H — Zack Sanders, sr.

WR — Daniel Bryant, sr.

WR — Bo Miller, jr.

TE — Noah Kema, sr.

K — Kameron Lake, so.

P — Jake Rittman, jr.

Defense

DT — Noah Kema, sr.

NT — Sam Hambleton, sr.

DT — Nick Eddis, sr.

ROLB — Gage Foster, jr.

ILB — Jay Dineen, sr.

ILB — David Johnson, jr.

LOLB — Drew Wise, sr.

CB — Zack Sanders, sr.

CB — Daniel Bryant, sr.

FS — Bo Miller, jr.

SS — Zion Bowlin, sr.