No Mr. Nice Guy : Football: Estancia’s Josh Wojtkiewicz is friendly off the field, but he’s all business once the game begins.

He’s cautiously humble.

“I don’t try to be No. 1. I mean, I do . . . but I don’t try to show anyone up.”

Of football, he has few secrets.

“It’s no trick, just take it play by play. . . . Every play you have to think ‘It’s gonna be a touchdown.’ ”

He knows his remedies.

“When I feel bad, I just start drinking milk.”

He’s Josh Wojtkiewicz, Estancia High School’s standout senior running back and quintessential All-American boy. Ask anyone who has known Wojtkiewicz longer than, oh, two or three hours, and you’re likely to hear positive descriptions galore.

But when Wojtkiewicz (pronounced WHY-kah-vetch) charges onto the field at game time, his affability is replaced by a sense of purpose and determination.

“It’s wild. His whole personality transforms on game days,” Estancia assistant coach Rick Meyers said. “He’s a happy-go-lucky guy before the game, but like when I saw him before the first game, he came out and I swear his face was purple. Not just red, purple.

“I just said, ‘Holy man!’ ”

Such reactions have become somewhat commonplace when Wojtkiewicz, 5-feet-10 and 180 pounds, carries the ball, running through or over defenders.

“I’m not a finesse runner. I just fight like hell to get what I have,” he says.

Tonight at 7:30, Corona del Mar (4-1) will try to do what no other team has done effectively this season--stop Wojtkiewicz and Estancia (5-0)--in the Sea View League opener for both teams at Orange Coast College.

Wojtkiewicz and many of his senior teammates have been trying--unsuccessfully--to beat the Sea Kings for four years.

Since 1985, when John Liebengood took over as coach, Estancia has not beaten Corona del Mar in football, at any level.

And in those four years, Wojtkiewicz, who also runs track and plays volleyball and baseball, has not beaten the Sea Kings in those sports, either.

“I’m ready now,” he said.

A starter as a sophomore, Wojtkiewicz did not have the most spectacular varsity debut. In fact, he was thrown out of his first game for unnecessary roughness on the opening kickoff.

“He was so fired up to be a starter on varsity, that’s how gung-ho he was,” said Greg Wojtkiewicz, his father. “So I got to see him sit on the sidelines and cry for the rest of the game.”

Said Josh Wojtkiewicz: “I think I was more intense as a sophomore. I used to love to hit, but now since I don’t play defense, I think I’ve gotten kind of soft. When you play defense, you’re a maniac.”

As a junior, Wojtkiewicz, who played mostly offense, gained 1,042 yards and scored seven touchdowns in leading Estancia to a 7-3-1 record and a berth in the Southern Section playoffs.

This season, Wojtkiewicz already has scored eight touchdowns and has rushed for 557 yards.

Coincidentally, Corona del Mar’s top running back, Brian Lucas, also has scored eight touchdowns, and has gained 554 yards. But when asked which back is better, Wojtkiewicz immediately pointed to his rival.

“Oh, he’s good, he’s great,” he said. “I always ask my friends, ‘Is he better than me?’ Of course they all say no, but I know they’re biased. I think he’s really good, probably better than me.”

Said Lucas: “I think the same about him. I ran track against him a couple of times, he’s a great athlete with real quick feet. He’s extremely quick, he’s got that on me.

“We’re pretty much opposites in running style, though. He’s a powerful fullback type of runner, he runs guys over. I think I try to make moves on a guy, go to the outside. I think we’d be great in the backfield together.”

Wojtkiewicz, who shares the backfield with senior tailback Gary Burrows, is more than the team’s leading scorer and ground-gainer. As a team captain, Wojtkiewicz has the ability to both relax his teammates with a joke or fire them up with a pep talk.

Last Friday, after Estancia received an inspirational speech from Rich Saul, a former Ram and six-time Pro Bowl selection, Wojtkiewicz was especially moved. Six days later, the effect was still evident.

“(Saul) was intense, the most intense player I have ever seen,” Wojtkiewicz said. “He told us to ask ourselves before every play ‘Are you a champion?’, and after every play ask yourself, ‘Did you play like a champion?’ I did that on every play. It really helped me.”

Wojtkiewicz had his best game the next day, rushing for 143 yards in a 21-0 shutout of Orange, Estancia’s toughest opponent so far.

“He’s wrapped real tight,” Orange Coach Tom Meiss said. “He’s durable and he’s tough.”

It is something that all Estancia opponents have learned. With Wojtkiewicz leading the way, the Eagles have outscored their opponents, 144-7.

Of course, the Eagles realize that Corona del Mar, the two-time defending league champion and the 1988 Division VI champion, will be their toughest opponent yet.

“I think (being 5-0) has got us thinking we can beat anyone,” Wojtkiewicz said. “Get five wins under your belt and you think nothing’s gonna stop us. We’re realistic though, we don’t take anyone lightly.”

And Corona del Mar, no doubt, feels much the same way.