Football Has its Home

Football and cheerleading practice kicked off last night in Costa Mesa at Parson’s Field behind Estancia High School’s Jim Scott Stadium.

The new and hopefully permanent (I will talk about that later) home of the Costa Mesa Pop Warner league fielded more than 275 kids for football and cheerleading.

The league has grown more than 50% in one year, so I decided to ask new league President Steve Mensinger how he did it. His response was direct and to the point.

“We re-created the program to exceed the expectations of the community with great coaches, a professionally structured administration and excellent facilities.”

Steve and I have been close friends and business associates for more than 15 years. My girls call him Uncle Steve, and to his sons I am Uncle Jim. I asked him this week to remind me why he got so involved.

It started three years ago when one of his sons was practicing in what Steve called the unlit drainage basin fields at the Farm Sports Complex just next to the soccer teams who were playing on the bright green fields under bright lights with a permanent concession stand.

When Steve asked another parent why they had the unlit fields in the drainage area, the response was that they were lucky to have a field at all.

Since its inception, the league has never had a home of its own. Year after year, it has been moved from one field to another. One year the league was moved to three different fields in a season. Soccer dominates the city politically, and that was the way it had always been.

Mensinger, a volunteer assistant coach at the time, immediately got on the phone with then-Mayor Allan Mansoor and asked what it would take for the team to get a permanent home.

Mansoor connected him with Recreation Manager Jana Ransom, and they started by looking at aerial views of the city. When they came upon a sorry-looking but underused field next to what is now the Waldorf School, Mensinger knew he had a diamond in the rough. Right next door and still under construction was Estancia High School’s new stadium with its year-round synthetic field.

The big question remained whether or not Pop Warner could use the stadium for their home games. Councilwoman Katrina Foley then set up a meeting with Mensinger and Estancia High School Principal Phil D’Agostino. Steve made his pitch, and Phil welcomed the league with open arms.

The Newport-Mesa School district and the city approved the arrangement as part of the joint-use program the city and district have in place. To show their appreciation, league officials changed their mascot from the Mustangs to the Eagles to mirror their host school.

Volunteers worked hundreds of hours to get the field in shape. They repaired fences and built ramps for the two cargo containers that doubled as storage facility and concession stand.

I called Ed Baum, the director of football, who started with the league in 1967 when his now 53-year-old son was in seventh grade. He told me this was the most participants Costa Mesa ever had, and it reminded him of the league’s hey-day in the late ’60s and early ’70s when “we won all the conference titles and trophies.”

Ed told me the most important function of the league was not to see how many kids went on to play football or cheerlead later in high school or college.

“What we are doing here is teaching life’s lessons of hard work, discipline and character,” he said. “We are more concerned about the type of people they become when they are 35 than how many touchdowns they make in high school.”

I couldn’t agree more.

Pop Warner football started in Costa Mesa in 1963. It is the oldest youth sports organization in the city. The program, which has had its ups and downs, is enjoying a rebirth after 45 years.

If anyone one is interested, there are still some spots open on the 10 teams that are categorized by age and weight, including a flag football team for 5- and 6-year-olds. The cheerleaders also have a squad that starts at 5. Come to Parsons Field to sign up or get information at http://www.costamesapopwarnerfootball.com/.

Opening day for the newly christened Costa Mesa Eagles is Aug. 16 at Jim Scott Stadium. Hope to see you there.