SAN DIEGO ---- The Cooper household was bustling with life Tuesday afternoon.

People occupied every corner of this sprawling suburban home, buzzing with energy uncharacteristic of a bachelor pad. A festive atmosphere pervaded through common areas and a backyard where adults socialized and children played.

In many ways it's a revival of holidays past in Wareham, Mass., a small New England town outside Boston where the nucleus of Stephen Cooper's family resides. Thanksgiving festivities have moved west with the star Chargers inside linebacker, and while the weather is warmer, the playful banter and undeniable family chemistry remains intact.

"It's the exact environment I grew up in," Cooper said. "We used to pack eight people into a two bedroom house. Now we have an eight-bedroom house and I still don't have enough beds for everyone. I try to put family up in hotels, but they want to stay under one roof as a family. We've got people sleeping on couches and chairs. It's just what we do. We stick together."

The family will be out all week, sharing turkey Thursday afternoon and Sunday's Chargers game against Kansas City. Normalcy will slowly return after that, as family members head back to their own lives across the country. Numbers will decrease to a select few, but the philosophy of being a Cooper never leaves.

While there wasn't a ton of money floating around during Cooper's youth, he thrived on the emotional support of his immediate family through good times and bad.

That's why Mark Williams is around for more than just the holidays. Cooper's nephew was on the path to nowhere in Wareham, admittedly wasting his youth with a bad crowd and one stupid decision after another. The teenager had all but given up on school, sporting a grade-point average that reflected his apathy.

"I started hanging around with the wrong crowd and I refused to take school seriously," Williams said. "My mom (Anika) was sick of it, so she made a phone call. I was either going to move here or to Florida with aunt. My uncle agreed to take me in."

Cooper didn't give it a second thought. He flew Williams out and enrolled him at Mt. Carmel High, where the 18-year old has been since the start of his junior year. The idea was to give Williams a fresh start and erase mistakes of an already checkered past.

"He didn't have a male role model to watch over him and teach him about becoming a man," Cooper said. "I grew up in an all-female household like he did, so I understand what he's going through. … I told Mark that if he wanted to come out here, I had the room to put him up and help him realize his potential."

The first step was to get Williams' grades in order. His academic problems went west with him, and rendered him ineligible to play football during the first four games of his junior year.

"It was rough, but it showed me how important grades were," Williams said. "Not being able to play football really got to me, and I started feeling bad about some decisions I made. I told myself I was never going through that again."

With that, Cooper found some leverage. He told Williams to pour focus into academics lest football be taken away yet again. He supported that assertion with his own experience, explaining that he too had to spend time in summer school trying to avoid academic ineligibility following his sophomore year at Wareham High.

It worked. Williams' grades are way up less than 18 months later and he's one of the reasons why the Sundevils have reached the second round of the CIF San Diego Section Division II playoffs.

The cornerback had double-digit tackles and a 70-yard fumble return in a first-round contest against Morse, which set up Friday's game with Oceanside and earned bragging rights back at home.

Cooper and Williams watch each other's game, evaluate statistics and decide who had the best individual performance. While Cooper was active as always in a 32-3 win over Denver, Williams got the nod this week.

"He beat me last week head to head, but his team's moving on in the playoffs and mine jumped into first place in the AFC West," Cooper said. "It's been a good week for both of us."

It's been a productive period for Williams, who seems to have his life straightened out. He's less than a year away from graduating high school, which no longer represents the end of his academic life.

"Uncle Stephen was the first person in our family to go to college," Williams said. "I'm going to be the second."

There's a real bond between the two thanks to common experience. Cooper and Williams grew up in the same town, where expectations can be extremely low and bright futures can dull. They both have a passion for football and didn't have strong male role models growing up. Both have made mistakes and have tried to improve themselves because of it.

That's why Cooper's at every Mt. Carmel game if he's not travelling with the Chargers. That's why he doesn't mind being candid about his past ---- which includes an arrest and a suspension for using the banned stimulant ephedra ---- if it means improving Williams' future.

"You have to do that," Cooper said. "He's been around when I've recovered from some bumps and bruises. I had to fight through my own obstacles, and he's seen how I've adjusted from my own mistakes. He's been around for all the negative things I've been through in life, but at the same time he's not afraid to ask questions and I'm not afraid to answer them honestly. Both of us have learned from my mistakes. Hopefully he doesn't make the same mistakes I've made in the past."

Williams is working to correct past mistakes and take advantage of this opportunity. His effort and discipline have been most encouraging for Cooper, an undrafted free agent who took the long road to success.

"I want to see him do well," Cooper said. "I didn't want him to fall behind and be like everyone else who gets caught up in the negative stuff back home. I wasn't going to let him fall into that trap. I want him to prosper as a man and as a member of this family.

"I had to push him after he first moved here, and I had to teach him some little things like pleases and thank yous, and how to shake a person's hand. I think he's adapted very well. The family came out for the holidays last year and everyone noticed a 180-degree improvement as a person.

"He's growing up fast and is showing respect for his elders. Thus far, it's been a great move."