Northampton’s football team knows what is coming Friday night in their home opener.

It is a test that can either propel or deflate the first few weeks of the season for the Konkrete Kids.

They have been waiting for quite some time for their rematch with Parkland, who they trailed 13-0 at halftime before a second-half collapse led to a 41-0 defeat.

“Football is game of execution,” offered Northampton head coach Kyle Haas. “We had a lot of mental mistakes against them (Parkland) in the second half. We didn’t have 11 guys playing as hard as they could have.”

Haas knows this will be a grind.

“We will have to play as physical as possible and make plays,” he said. “We have to do what we do well. If we have any weaknesses, they will be exploited.”

Haas liked his team’s showing in their recent scrimmage against Allentown Central Catholic. The Kids have plenty of offensive weapons led by quarterback Joe Kerbacher and running back Tyrese Brandon.

“Offensively, we are very close to being a pretty good football team,” said Haas. “We did some good things on offense and we have to do them consistently.

“Defensively, our kids got tired at times. When that happens, they don’t do what they’re supposed to do. Our Achilles’ heel continues to be tackling. Sometimes, we get out of control. We have to continue to stress to run toward the football.”

Offensively, Parkland will have a new quarterback in the fold, but it will return running back Isiah Rico, who missed the last seven games last year due to an injury. Tight end Ja-Lon Perkins and wide receiver Dante Medlar loom as major targets.

Penn State recruit lineman Nate Dawkins will lead an experienced front.

“They seem bigger up front than last year,” said Haas of Parkland. “They will be physical and can rotate eight or nine guys on defense in their 4-3 alignment. They can run downhill and they did a good job against Wilson West Lawn.”

Haas knows his team has to take the next step from their 8-4 campaign last year.

He said Andrew Sharga, and co-captains Nick Caiazzo and Josh Gaycheck will miss the Parkland game with injuries.

“We have history now,” he said. “We can look back at what we did last year and we have to correct our mistakes.

“We have to do the best we can, and this will be a good litmus test.”