Springtime always brings high school football activity and news.
The biggest news is transfer news.
Santa Margarita has a new quarterback, Trace Johnson, who recently transferred from Florida. Johnson, who will be a senior in the fall, is a 6-foot, 170-pound college prospect from Buchholz High in Gainesville.
Santa Margarita issued a press release to announce Johnson’s move.
Such an announcement, even by a big, athletically-ambitious private school like Santa Margarita, is unusual. That might become the norm soon with how frequently top student-athletes transfer now.
The press release included a news story from the Gainesville Sun about Johnson’s move that included: “Known for his cannon of an arm, Johnson threw for over 6,300 yards and 64 touchdowns in two years. His 3,522 yards this past season ranked fourth in Florida and first in Class 6A.”
Florida high school football divisions are organized by enrollment. The top enrollment-based division is Class 8A. Class 6A is the third-highest class.
Johnson finished his junior season by completing 36 of 50 passes for 439 yards and five touchdowns in a loss to Osceola in the semifinals. He also started for Buchholz in his sophomore year.
Santa Margarita hired Carson Palmer as its new football coach on Thursday, Dec. 12. Palmer says he is returning to his alma mater to try to have an impact on the lives of young athletes. ‘I want to be part of that. I want to feel that,’ he said. (Courtesy of Santa Margarita High)Having a Heisman Trophy-winning, ex-NFL star quarterback in Carson Palmer as the new head coach likely makes Santa Margarita an even bigger destination for football players than it already was. Especially quarterbacks.
Johnson and his family probably were well aware, too, that Santa Margarita has a great USC-committed receiver, Trent Mosley, on its roster, a great set of linemen and competes in the Trinity League, often acknowledged as the nation’s best high school football league.
Mater Dei also has a transfer quarterback in Ryan Hopkins, who was All-Trinity League first team last season at JSerra. Dash Beierly was the Monarchs’ starting quarterback in 2024 after he transferred to Mater Dei for his senior year.
Hopkins, who will be a junior next season, already has made an impact at Mater Dei, although not in football. On the first day he became eligible to compete for Mater Dei’s track and field team, Hopkins was part of the Monarchs’ 4×100 relay team Saturday at the Orange County Championships. The Mater Dei foursome set a meet record and a school record with their time of 41.44 seconds.
Manoah Faupusa plays football at Los Alamitos High School. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)Santa Margarita has several other incoming transfers. Offensive lineman Niniva Nicholson and defensive lineman Simote Katoanaga are transfers from JSerra. Defensive lineman Manoah Faupusa, who was a star at Los Alamitos two years ago as a sophomore before going to St. Ignatius in Los Angeles, is also now at Santa Margarita.
As for spring football activity …
Spring football 7-on-7 passing tournaments are heating up. Cypress High has one May 16. It has Beckman, Corona del Mar, Cypress, El Modena, Pacifica, San Clemente, Troy and Yorba Linda.
One of the bigger spring passing tournaments is the Long Beach Tournament of Champions at Millikan High on May 17. Competing there will be Orange County teams Edison, Huntington Beach, JSerra, La Habra, Mission Viejo, Servite and Western. That one also has Centennial of Corona, Inglewood and St. John Bosco.
The Brave 8 passing tournament is June 28 at St. John Bosco. The big one that always concludes the summer is the great Battle at the Beach at Edison, this year on July 12.
College showcases are all over the schedule, too. San Clemente got that started in 2014 when Sam Darnold was its quarterback. This year’s NCAA Showcase at San Clemente is May 14 with Capistrano Valley, Corona del Mar and Dana Hills also involved in the 7-on-7 and linemen competition there. (The event’s flyer includes this info: “Tri Tip Dinner After For College Coaches.”)
Mater Dei begins serious preparation for a run at another national championship with its first spring practice on April 28 at 7:30 a.m.
Mater Dei football’s college showcase is May 13. It starts at 7:30 a.m. Given the number of college football prospects on the Mater Dei roster, the campus parking lot will be close to full at 7:15 a.m.
Even junior high kids are busy in the high school world. Many high schools, including the ones serious about football, are associated with youth football programs. Players in junior high are working out at camps and competitions under the direction of high school coaches.
The 4 Vert 7 on 7 Passing League started last month. Mater Dei is associated with a youth team there as are many other high school football programs. That’s all legal under CIF rules since the long-ago elimination of the old “association rule” that banned high school coaches from working with their athletes outside of their high school programs.
The names of the 7-on-7 teams give clues about their high school associations. If you know mascots and other high school sports words it’s easy to figure out “OC Diablos,” “Bellflower Braves Blue,” “Asylum Black,” “Red Storm” and “Eagle Blue.”
If you think these high school boys are doing way too much football …
There is a 4 Vert 7 on 7 Passing League for girls flag football, too.
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