Santa Margarita’s Collins Has Courage to Overcome the Pain : Football: Knee problems not enough to keep quarterback from the game and Friday’s key Sea View League matchup with El Toro.

The five-inch scar on Chris Collins’ right kneecap goes from the top of the cap to the base. Just like the one on his left knee. And they are covered in bags of ice after every Santa Margarita football practice and game.

The scars are constant reminders of the two surgeries Collins underwent in December and February. He was born with kneecaps that did not sit directly above the knees but off to the side. This condition can weaken the muscles around the kneecap and make it difficult to fully extend the leg.

It’s a condition that can lead to arthritis, among other medical problems.

Although Collins was able to play sports, his knees caused him pain and stiffness. The muscles around his kneecaps weakened as he grew. Those problems were exacerbated last year when he dislocated both kneecaps, causing him to miss most of his junior season.

It’s remarkable that Collins is playing football, much less starting at quarterback. He needed a minimum of two months of post-surgery therapy on each knee before he could bend them.

“In a way it was like starting to walk all over again,” Collins said. “I’d like to say I’m 95% right now; I really haven’t had any problems with them. And I always tried to stay positive, like my mom told me.”

One motivating factor will greet Collins face-to-face on Friday at Saddleback College. That’s El Toro, which is Santa Margarita’s primary obstacle to winning its first Sea View League title.

Both teams are 6-1, 2-0 in league. El Toro is ranked first in Division V and fifth in the county. Santa Margarita is ranked second in Division V and eighth in the county.

“I’ve been thinking about them the whole off-season,” Collins said. “We understand if we are to win league, this is basically the game we have to win.

“We still have to play Corona del Mar and they’re a really good team. But to win league, [El Toro] is the team we have to go through. Their offense has many weapons, but I feel the same about our team. Nobody’s really stopped us; we’ve stopped ourselves.”

And Collins is the hub of that offense, which averages 30.1 points and 333.9 yards.

He has passed for 930 yards and six touchdowns, with only two interceptions. He has also run for 125 yards and five touchdowns.

“His physical presence is impressive,” Santa Margarita Coach Jim Hartigan said. “He’s bigger than most quarterbacks in size and strength, and hits you like a linebacker--that’s a bonus when he scrambles. But Chris also throws the deep ball extremely well, and is accurate with the short [pass].

“He’s a guy who works hard in practice. Doesn’t say much, but will talk to the team when it needs it. He goes out every week to try and improve on his last game. The team respects that he worked to get to where he is.”

There were times when that work--the rehabilitation--was slow and frustrating. But Collins didn’t want his high school career to end with question marks.

“I could have always said, ‘I had surgery on my knees and had to quit playing,’ and people would understand,” Collins said. “But I didn’t want to regret not playing. I didn’t want to be sitting around 20 years later saying, ‘I could have done that.’ ”

It’s odd that Collins’ injuries occurred as a quarterback.

After transferring to Santa Margarita from Tustin after his freshman year--”for the academics,” said Collins, who entered this semester with a 4.32 grade-point average--he was an all-league linebacker and a running back as a sophomore.

He was willing to stay on defense as a junior, but was grateful when the coaches offered him the chance to play quarterback, his position as a freshman.

Collins, however, hurt his right knee before the season opener.

He did not return until Santa Margarita’s seventh game, against El Toro.

Collins passed for a career-best 203 yards--a figure he matched in a 28-27 loss to Fountain Valley, the Eagles’ only defeat this season. But he only remembers the Chargers scoring 24 consecutive points in the second half to win, 33-9.

“We were excited coming into the game, and at halftime we were tied,” Collins said. “In the second half . . . we just fell apart. We’d fumble the ball, I threw a couple of interceptions, and things just steamrolled.”

El Toro Coach Mike Milner does not expect a similar easy time, especially with a motivated Collins, who will not be trying to shake off six weeks of rust on Friday.

“I know the game means a lot to him,” Milner said. “But it also means a lot to our quarterback, Steve Krupp. He’s a senior, and both quarterbacks are the focal points for both teams.

“It will be a good football game, and [the result] could be proportionate to what the quarterbacks do.”