When we head to the post-season on Under the Lights Friday night, the Chico Panthers will get another shot at redemption.
Earlier in the year they finally got over the hump against rival Pleasant Valley, and now have a chance to avenge their season opening loss at Lassen.
When the Northern Section Division One playoff brackets were revealed this past weekend, the Chico Panthers already thought their season was over, especially after losing their last regular season game 21-0 against Shasta.
Panthers Quarterback Nate Anderson says, "I woke up, I didn't want to talk to anybody because I didn't want to find out bad news, I tried to ignore my phone and then finally I looked at it and it had about ten missed calls and texts saying we were in and we were playing Lassen at Lassen."
The Panthers earned the sixth and final spot and for this team the focus now turns to ending a three game losing streak Friday in Susanville against a Grizzlies team that beat Chico 30-12 in the first game of the year.
Panthers Head Coach Jason Alvistur says, "I'm telling you like people ask me, 'oh, you have to go to Lassen, that's going to be a horrible trip.' No, I want to go to Lassen, I want to redeem myself, y players want to redeem themselves to get that second chance. So we're happy, this is exactly what we wanted and we are fired up and ready to play some football."
And this time around this Chico squad knows what its going to take to beat the Grizzlies.
Panthers Running Back Kayhan Karatakelli says, "a lot of determination and execution. Our first game against them, we didn't play as a team and we've grown over the season and I believe this time is going to be a little tough for them."
And throw the seeds and the brackets out the window because its playoff time and once the playoffs start its a brand new season, something these Panthers are fortunate to have. Reporting for Action Sports I'm Ross Field.
