Read these:
These will help get you started thinking with an engineering mindset and will set you ahead of many other teams right away making you more competitive. (There is always a very simple but extreamly competive way to play the game. You just have to find it.)
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/papers/2250
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/papers/2303
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/papers/2175
This should give you a general idea of a very talanted team's season:
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/papers/2360
Oh, and this may help too:
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/papers/1469
By the way, these are all on this website. Go to the top of the portal and click CD-Media. It's full of great stuff it would benift you to read.
Good Luck in your FIRST Season!