Unlike professional football, college football teams don’t have three or four exhibition games to prepare for the season. College teams have to find out on the field — in a game that counts — who can and cannot play, what units are strengths and weaknesses and who are the starters and backups.

The College of San Mateo faced all those questions in its season opener Saturday, a dominating 41-7 win over American River. Despite the final score, the CSM coaching staff knows it was just the beginning and there are still things on which to work.

“It was the little things (that we didn’t do). We didn’t sustain intensity,” said CSM head coach Larry Owens.

Teams also have to put last year in the rearview mirror. If this game was played on paper using last year’s rosters, there’s a chance the outcome might have been different. The Bulldogs are coming off an 8-3 season while American River was 10-0 in 2005. As is the case in community college football — where tremendous turnover is normal year after year — neither team that took the field Saturday in the Sacramento suburbs was the same from last year.

What was the same, however, was the Bulldogs’ high-scoring offense. CSM matched its average points output from last season with 41 — despite a new offensive line, a new quarterback and a host of new receivers and running backs. Sophomore quarterback Jose Avina made his first college start and accounted for 326 of the Bulldogs’ 419 yards of offense. Avina rushed for 92 yards on just 10 carries, including a 49-yard scoring run in the first quarter.

Surprising, however, was Avina throwing for 234 yards, completing 17 of 30 pass attempts. While quarterbacking San Mateo High for three years, Avina was not called on to pass all that much.

“(Saturday) was the most throwing I’ve ever done,” Avina said. “At San Mateo, you were lucky to throw the ball five times (a game).”

CSM offensive coordinator Bret Pollack said the game play was based on what the coaching staff believed the American River defense would throw at the Bulldogs. Based on that, Pollack figured that throwing the ball would get the job done.

“We kind of knew what they would do,” Pollack said of American River. “We have three or four receivers to play catch with.”

Is it Friday yet?

Despite a strong showing Saturday, Avina did not lock up the starting quarterback position.

It’s not because of a lack of performance. Pollack keeps all positions on offense up for grabs and the players who start are the ones who perform the best in the week of practice leading up to the game.

The fact Avina had a dismal summer did not mean he was out of the running to start Saturday. Avina knows he will play as long as he performs.

“It’s fun. You have to stay sharp,” Avina said. “You have to treat (each practice) like a game. No mistakes.”

Backup David Singleton, out of Salesian High in Richmond, saw some time Saturday and was impressive. He completed 4 of 5 passes for 54 yards and led the Bulldogs to a score.

“Both (quarterbacks) made good decisions and put points on the board,” Owens said.

Added Avina: “David’s a good player. He could easily start Saturday.”

Avina believes he had the advantage to win the starter’s role since this is his third year at CSM. After graduating from San Mateo in 2004, he gray-shirted his first year at CSM and served as backup to Julian Edelman last year.

“I’ve been here two years, I should know more than anyone coming in,” Avina said. “Mentally, I had the edge. Physically, we still have to battle it out.”

Up next: vs. Chabot, 1 p.m. Saturday

Despite an offense Chabot coach Danny Calcagno described as “anemic,” the Gladiators still recorded an impressive 30-7 win over Merced last weekend, thanks mainly to the defense and special teams. Andrew Cabianca fell on a fumble in the end zone for one score while Teon Anderson went 85 yards with a blocked punt.

“We’re not hitting the panic button yet,” said Calcagno, who made a name for himself by turning a moribund San Leandro High program into one of the best in the Bay Area. “Stats can be deceiving. Scores can be deceiving.”

Calcagno said his offense moved from the run-dominated veer to a more spread attack that puts more focus on the passing game. It’s still a work in progress as the Gladiator offense managed only 207 yards of total offense against Merced.