Mesa tweaks offense, alters defense

Rick Devereux

With the changes taking place at Costa Mesa High, new coach Tom

Baldwin has tried to keep a piece of continuity with the football

program by staying with much of the same offensive philosophy that

helped the Mustangs outscore their opponents by an average of 30-19

last season.

“We will be running basically the same offense as last year with

only some minor things different,� Baldwin said. “We didn’t have an

audible system before, but now I’m trying to implement one where the

quarterback can check out of a play if the defense is stacked up

against it.�

Defensively, Costa Mesa will switch from a flex scheme that

utilized a lot of zone coverage, to four-four with a much greater

emphasis on attacking.

“Players had lot of reads and responsibilities on defense last

year,� Baldwin said. “I want to run more man coverage and commit more

people to the line of scrimmage. I think the best pass defense is

pass pressure. I want to try to put as much pressure on the

quarterback as I possibly can.�

An attacking defense needs solid cornerbacks who play one-on-one

with receivers and Baldwin thinks Mesa has the athletes to perform

that task.

“I feel we have four real good corners who can cover just about

anybody,� he said. “And they’ve all had some sort of experience, so

that is a plus.�

Baldwin said any of the four linebackers will be a threat to blitz

on any play.

Jeff Waldron returns after a junior season in which he earned

first-team All-Golden West League and Newport-Mesa Defensive Player

of the Year honors. He led the Mustangs in interceptions and was one

of the team leaders in tackles.

“Jeff Waldron was the MVP of the team a year ago and will play a

vital role in whatever we do,� Baldwin said. “We will line him up as

both an inside and outside linebacker, depending on who we play and

what they like to do.�

Waldron also shines as a tight end, where he led all Mesa

receivers with four touchdown catches last year.

Other all-league returners are senior offensive linemen Bryce

Carich and Rodrigo Gutierrez, who will play on the left side at guard

and tackle, respectively.

Here is a breakdown of Costa Mesa position-by-position:

Quarterback: Ryan French saw limited time as a sophomore last

season, but will step into the starting role in 2004.

“French was a backup last year, but started one game and played

most of another, so he does have some experience at the varsity

level,� Baldwin said. “We will ask him to be able to read the defense

and audible if the play we call is well defended.�

French was 1 for 7 for 39 yards through the air last year and had

one run for no gain. But he has impressed the coaching staff over the

summer.

“He is certainly a leader,� Baldwin said. “He has been good in

practice at using the audible system and at reading the defense.�

Sophomore Cody Waldron, Jeff’s brother, will be the backup.

Running backs: The wing-T offense Costa Mesa uses three different

running backs: a fullback lined up behind the quarterback; a T back

lined up as the wingback away from the tight end; and a Z back

positioned on the same side as the tight end.

The formation is meant to keep the defense guessing, with players

being sent in motion to various spots all over the field.

“Even when we’re spread with the backs wide, we may have a wide

receiver come hard in motion and carry the ball,� Baldwin said.

Senior Jorge Quiroz had a team-high 472 yards receiving and added

another 5 yards rushing last year. He will be the starting T back.

Chris Johnson and Ivan Ruiz are the projected backups and Baldwin

said all three have been doing a good job in practice.

Evan Hunter, who had the fifth- and sixth-longest scoring plays

last year with a 62-yard reception against Laguna Beach and a 60-yard

run against Ocean View, will be the primary Z back.

Senior Jasbir Seewalt and junior Mitch Caldwell will serve as

backups.

Junior Tyler Legg is the fullback with Richard Huk as a backup.

Baldwin said Randy Fea would be in the mix, but he had only

practiced one day because of an undisclosed illness.

Receivers: While the T and Z backs are key targets in the passing

game, there is still at least one receiver split away from the

formation.

Tony Krikorian caught four passes for 38 yards last year as a

sophomore and figures to be the starting receiver this year.

Sophomore Kirkland Huynh will get playing time as the backup.

Junior Ryan Bagwell, last year’s kicker, practiced once as the

wide receiver and split open his chin. Baldwin said he should heal in

time and will practice at receiver again.

Tight ends: Waldron is the man here, with the right combination of

strength and skills to excel.

“He is extremely intelligent and disciplined,� Baldwin said of

Waldron, who is an all-league basketball player and also plays

baseball for the Mustangs. “He is vital to the running and passing

game.�

Garret Walthers and Giovani Porcayo are the backups.

Offensive line: The left side of the line may be the best in the

Golden West League with all-league tackle Gutierrez and all-league

guard Carich both back.

Costa Mesa averaged 243 rushing yards per game last year, second

best in the league to Orange’s 391. And Gutierrez and Carich deserve

much of the credit.

“Those two are really, really good,� Baldwin said “They started

every game last year and give us a very good O-line this year.�

The other tackle will be senior Chris Simirak, who impressed the

coaches with his workouts.

“Simirak has been a very pleasant surprise for us,� Baldwin said.

“He wasn’t that strong last year, but he has been looking very good

this year.�

Robert De La Cruz will start at right guard and Carlos Soto is the

center.

The backups are Danny Muniz and Jose Valencia at center, Erik

Moreno and Gerrado Valencia at guard and Juan Diaz at tackle.

Defensive line: De La Cruz is expected to be the lone two-way

starter on the line, by being the top left end in the four-four

alignment. He is backed up by Porcayo and Guttierrez.

Senior Adam Golbiewski will start at right end, but he is being

challenged for playing time by a determined Carich.

“Carich has been dying to play defense,� Baldwin said.

Diaz and Moreno will start at tackles with Muniz and the two

Valencia brothers as the backups.

Linebackers: Waldron is slated to be the starting strong inside

linebacker, but Baldwin said he will move around depending on the

opponent and may even line up at different positions during a game.

“He knows exactly what he’s supposed to do in any situation,�

Baldwin said. “He is an outstanding young man.�

Legg is the projected backup.

Cameron Wynglarz is a returning starter at inside linebacker and

is being counted on to take his game to a higher level.

“Cameron will call out the defense and will be a leader for us,�

Baldwin said.

Senior Duane Wase will back up Wynglarz with Fea projected to

climb the depth chart once he returns.

The left outside linebacker is Walthers, with Caldwell as the

reserve.

Seewalt will man the right outside linebacker, with Huk as his

backup.

Secondary: Krikorian is only the third returning starter on

defense for the Mustangs. He will be stationed at one corner with

Quiroz, Johnson, Hunter and Jon Morris fighting for the other spot.

“All of our starters -- Cameron at linebacker and Krikorian at

corner -- they need to step up for us to have a good year,� Baldwin

said

The safety position is currently occupied by senior Jamison

Morris, but Hunter and sophomore Cody Hunter could also see playing

time.

“Safety is a very important position in our defense,� Baldwin

said. “He must change our coverages if he sees something in the

offense and must be a leader in the secondary.�

Kicking game: Bagwell will handle of the kicking duties again this

year. He kicked two 34-yard field goals last season.

Jeff Waldron is the backup punter and Krikorian will be the

emergency kicker.

Senior fullback and linebacker Troy Wright will battle De La Cruz

as the longsnapper.

Quiroz and hunter will return kicks.