High School Football Preview: Costa Mesa seeks the will to overcome

Sometimes, the character of a football team cannot be measured by numbers.

Since taking over as the head football coach at Costa Mesa High in 2015, Glen Fisher has done his best to instill a particular culture. It is one he hopes inspires an understanding from his players that nothing is going to be given to them.

Rules are rules. If they don’t practice, they don’t play. No matter how difficult a situation gets, it has been presented as an opportunity to overcome.

After a year in which the team took its lumps, the Mustangs still have just eight seniors on their roster, but Fisher likes their makeup in terms of their ability to lead by example.

Quarterback Ben Swanson, defensive end Angel Valle, and inside linebacker Jack Perez have all been in the program since they first entered the school.

Valle’s story resonates with many who have struggled to stay on the field, for one reason or another. When his mother, a single parent, lost her job, Valle feared that he would have to give up the game of football.

He had to grow up fast. Valle mentioned that as one gets older, they see things that they were unable to recognize before. He simply could not let himself do nothing as his family, which includes a younger brother, struggled to make ends meet.

Valle picked up a job in the mornings. He would then go to school and still find a way to make it to practice most of the time.

“Where I’ve been, it’s hard to grow up,” Valle said. “I came up to [Coach Fisher], and I started crying. ‘I need to quit because I need to take care of my younger brother.’ ”

“Thanks for [Fisher]. He made me stay. He made me understand.”

Sooner than some might expect from a high school student, Valle has taken huge steps toward becoming a man. More and more, the hours of responsibility and accountability have increased.

“Seeing your mother suffering, it hurts a lot,” Valle added. “This is why I tell a lot of kids, ‘Just keep it up. Don’t be disrespecting your mom. She’s the one that will be there for you.’ ”

Valle’s story a powerful story, one that can potentially unite a locker room. It is no wonder why Fisher feels his team possesses ample leadership.

From the standpoint of overcoming, the Mustangs will be tasked with putting a 1-9 season behind them. They are taking the right approach to doing so. Fisher and the rest of the Mustangs are saying that they are 1-0 coming into the season after the 2016 campaign ended with a 6-0 shutout victory over Saddleback.

“That was a big win for us,” Fisher said. “When you win your last game, it’s huge. We’re carrying that momentum. We’re 1-0 right now. We’re carrying that in.”

Swanson has more than momentum on his side. His senior season will be his third as the Mustangs’ starting quarterback.

The southpaw indicated that the value in having multiple years of experience comes prior to the snap of the ball.

“It’s so much better when I’m able to recognize stuff by myself, and then I can help the other players around me,” Swanson said of reading defenses at the line of scrimmage. “It’s great. All these years of experience have helped me to be like a general.”

The Mustangs are not the most physically imposing team. The team is preaching aggression and heart to make up for what they lack in size.

Costa Mesa plans to run a number of players out on both sides of the ball. Perez pointed to one such player as one that could give the team a spark.

“I think Christian Romero is one of the shortest players on this team, but he’s probably one of the feistiest players on this team,” said Perez, who will play linebacker and tight end. “That guy goes 110% every play.”

“He’s an outside linebacker and running back. He’s probably one of those guys that is going to beat you down the whole game until it’s over. First to last whistle, all the way through, no doubt in my mind.”

Fisher wants his group to concentrate on the task directly in front of them. For now, that means preparing for the opener against San Gabriel Gabrielino.

Although they will prepare for every game the same way, there could be some added pressure when the Battle for the Bell is renewed with Estancia on Oct. 20.

In Fisher’s first two seasons at the helm, the Mustangs have been outscored, 65-7, by their in-city rival. When the time comes, they will be chomping at the bit to change that trend.

“Once we get there, it’s over,” Perez said. “I’m not stepping off the throttle. I know [Swanson] is not stepping off the throttle. Nobody is.”

The Battle for the Bell was competitive wire-to-wire during the 2016-2017 school year. The All-Sports Cup was clinched by the Estancia softball team in the schools’ final meeting of the year.

“The driving force isn’t The Bell,” Fisher said, reiterating his desire to take the season one game at a time. “The driving force is winning that football game. That’s how we approach it.”

“It hurts more when you lose that one, which we’ve felt for two years. It also feels better when you win that one. When you get down to it, you’re just playing a football game, and you’ve got to battle for it.”

The Schedule

Aug. 25: Gabrielino

Sept. 1: Santiago

Sept. 8: Loara

Sept. 14: at Los Amigos

Sept. 23: at Savanna

Oct. 6: Calvary Chapel *

Oct. 13: at Laguna Beach *

Oct. 20: Estancia *

Oct. 27: Godinez *

Nov. 2: at Saddleback *

* denotes Orange Coast League game

Andrew.Turner@latimes.com

Twitter: @ProfessorTurner