"You have to play the schedule and it's the one that I inherited," said Eberhart, whose team suffered a 52-13 loss to Cathedral last season on the road. "Hopefully, we will be better than last year and we are going to have a very tough first game.
"They blitzed us heavily last year and they were able to set the tone. We know in that game that we will have to execute and control the ball more."
Glendale, which last qualified for the playoffs in 2003, will then close out the nonleague portion of its schedule with a two-game road trip. The Nitros will meet La Cañada at 7 p.m. Sept. 17 before facing South Pasadena at 7 p.m. Sept. 24.
The Spartans handed Glendale a 35-0 setback, last season but regrouped to earn a 28-21 win against South Pasadena.
"The one thing I do know about La Cañada is that you can't underestimate them," Eberhart said. "I think we should be able to play with them.
"With South Pasadena, we had a good game with them last year. I expect it to be the same again."
Glendale will then jump into league portion of its schedule when it meets rival Crescenta Valley at 7 p.m. Oct. 1 at Moyse Field. It will mark the first of three consecutive home league contests for the Nitros.
Eberhart coached the Falcons for parts of 14 seasons, finishing 89-58-1 and guiding Crescenta Valley to five Pacific League championships. Crescenta Valley notched a 56-14 victory last season and reached the second round of the Southeast Division playoffs.
"It's our first league game and it's going to be big for [Crescenta Valley first-year Coach] Paul Schilling," Eberhart said. "I went through it last season and now I'm looking to see if we can play at that high level."
