Many high schools started preparation for the football season with hell week on Monday.
For Costa Mesa High, it kicked things off with a lift-a-thon.
Forty-six players showed up to campus to see who could bench, power clean or squat the most weight on the team. Marco Zalpa, an incoming senior, topped everyone in two of the three competitions.
Zalpa easily benched and squatted his own weight, 265 pounds, before maxing out at 330 pounds on the bench and 405 on the squat. His strength bodes well for the Mustangs, who are counting on the offensive guard to pave the way for their ground attack.
The tailback Zalpa will block for, Oronde Crenshaw, finished first in the power clean. Crenshaw, a highly recruited incoming senior, cleaned 280 pounds. He finished second in the bench with two teammates, tight end Joseph Quiroz and wide receiver Quinton Bell, who each hit 300 pounds.