Hoping to press the restart button on their season tonight, the Louisiana Swashbucklers are back in action after an early bye week.

The Bucs dropped their opener to the Albany Panthers, the two-time defending Pro Indoor Football League champs, 51-40. It was not the kind of start Louisiana was hoping for, as they open the new season with four straight home games.

“You don’t want to lose at home,” said Bucs head coach Darnell Lee. “It is hard to win on the road in this league and you don’t want to be playing catchup all season.”

The Bucs had to play catchup against Albany, falling behind 14-0 before making a change at quarterback. Rookie Tim Curry was replaced by Chris Mitchell on the team’s third drive and the offense began to click.

Mitchell will get the start this week as league newcomer Lehigh Valley (1-1) comes to town for a 7 p.m. kickoff inside the Lake Charles Civic Center.

“This is a big game for us,” said receiver Jordan Rideaux. “You don’t want to lose two in a row at home to start. That’s not good.”

With that in mind, Mitchell gets the nod. He finished the opener 15 of 25 for 208 yards and three touchdowns. Two of those scores went to Rideaux, who ended with 11 catches for 166 yards and scored a third TD on the ground.

Mitchell also ran 10 times for 33 yards and a score.

“He was able to go in there, move the team and put points on the board,” Lee said of Mitchell. “He gives us some other options as far as running the football.

“We still think Tim will be an excellent football player. He just needs to gain some experience.”

(Rick Hickman / American Press)

Rick Hickman