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  • Yorba Linda players warm up before a practice this week....

    Yorba Linda players warm up before a practice this week. Yorba Linda is among a handful of Orange County football teams moved to a new league for the upcoming season.

  • Trabuco Hills senior Jacob Breeland runs during a drill this...

    Trabuco Hills senior Jacob Breeland runs during a drill this week. Trabuco Hills moves into the Sea View League this season.

  • Rick Curtis is putting his stamp on his new team,...

    Rick Curtis is putting his stamp on his new team, Santa Margarita. The former Northwood coach has installed the spread offense.

  • Trabuco Hills quarterback Jimmy Jacobs runs during drills this week....

    Trabuco Hills quarterback Jimmy Jacobs runs during drills this week. The Mustangs move into the Sea View League this season after playing in the South Coast League a year ago.

  • The Trabuco Hills varsity football team is getting for its...

    The Trabuco Hills varsity football team is getting for its season. The Mustangs move into the Sea View League this season.

  • Yorba Linda football coach Jeff Bailey watches his players practice...

    Yorba Linda football coach Jeff Bailey watches his players practice as they get ready for their season opener against Valencia on Sept. 5. Yorba Linda moves into the newly created Crestview League this year.

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Football practice is in full gear in Orange County.

With football pretty much a year-round operation now, the final weeks of August can be a fine-tuning period for many teams. But there still are starting positions to be settled, offensive and defensive schemes to be adjusted.

And with the new rules this season – a cap of 18 hours of athletics participation per week per athlete, and no more than three hours of full-contact drills a week – making those adjustments and figuring out starting lineups is a bigger challenge for the county’s football coaches.

Here are some items to watch for as the season approaches:

Keeping up with the Johnsons

Brock Johnson takes over as the quarterback at Mission Viejo, where his grandfather, Bob, is head coach, and his father, Bret, and uncle, Rob, oversee the offense. Bob, Bret and Rob played quarterback in high school and college, and Bret and Rob played quarterback professionally. Rob was the most accomplished of the family, so far.

Brock is a 6-foot-2, 180-pound (and growing) junior. He quarterbacked the Mission Viejo junior varsity to a 10-0 record last year and is coming off a strong summer. Brock has some pressure on him, because of the family success and because Mission Viejo continues to be a high-profile team.

Brock Johnson isn’t the only Mission Viejo player with football in his DNA. The Diablos’ roster includes sophomore receiver Keyshawn Johnson, the son and namesake of the former USC and NFL receiver, and senior center Cole Smith, the son of Rams all-time great center Doug Smith.

Given the genetics and the guidance he will receive, Brock Johnson has a good chance at continuing his family’s tradition of excellence at the position.

Brock Johnson makes his varsity debut Aug. 29 when Mission Viejo plays Liberty of Bakersfield, which was 9-2 last year, on the first day of the two-day Mission Viejo Classic.

Changing places and new spaces

There have been some significant changes to the league alignments for football this season.

San Juan Hills and Dana Hills, which finished first and second, respectively, in the Sea View League last year, move into the South Coast, and San Clemente and Trabuco Hills move from the South Coast to the Sea View.

The South Coast league includes El Toro, Mission Viejo and Tesoro. The Sea View includes Aliso Niguel, Capistrano Valley and Laguna Hills. All of the teams are part of the Coast View Athletic Association.

Yorba Linda moves from the Empire League to join the seven schools that were in the Century League last season. Those eight teams will form the Century Conference, which will be divided into the Crestview and North Hills leagues.

The Crestview, which is the stronger league, includes Esperanza, Foothill, Villa Park and Yorba Linda. The North Hills teams are Brea Olinda, Canyon, El Dorado and El Modena.

Best of times for Trinity League?

The Trinity League, which is the most-loaded league in Southern California and could be the best league in the nation, appears to be better than ever this year.

Servite and St. John Bosco, which was named national champion last season by several websites, have been included in some of the national preseason top 20s.

Servite and four other Trinity teams – JSerra, Mater Dei, Orange Lutheran and Santa Margarita – look like they will be in the Orange County top 10 this season.

There will be a very, very good Trinity League team that won’t make the Pac-5 playoffs this season.

Which Trinity League teams in these first couple of weeks will look like sure things to make the playoffs?

New coach, new everything

Rick Curtis is like the person who purchases a fine house and refurbishes everything.

With Harry Welch as its coach, Santa Margarita ran a lot of option on offense. Curtis, hired by the Eagles upon Welch’s retirement after last season, has installed the spread, which is a favored offense in the Trinity League.

Curtis also brought in several new coaches. Jeff Grady, an Edison alum who played and coached at Fresno State, is the new offensive coordinator. Jeff Veeder, a holdover from Welch’s staff who has been a head coach at Capistrano Valley and elsewhere, is the defensive coordinator.

“Grady has brought in some interesting packages,” Curtis said. “Veeder is not really as much of an old-school guy as you would think. He is very up-to-date.”

How smoothly this transition is going will be revealed by the Eagles’ nonleague schedule that starts with a home game against Bishop Amat of La Puente on Aug. 29 at Saddleback College.

Will Sea Kings keep the crown?

Many will say Corona del Mar should win another CIF-SS championship this season. The Sea Kings have won three in a row, taking the Southern Division title in 2011, ’12 and ’13.

The Sea Kings have plenty of top-shelf returnees, including Southern Division defensive player of the year Parker Chase, a defensive end; All-CIF receivers Cole Collins and Bo St. Geme; All-CIF running back Cole Martin; All-CIF defensive lineman Justin Hess; and All-CIF defensive back Brett Greenlee.

Those players will face tougher playoff foes than they did a year ago.

Corona del Mar and the rest of the Pacific Coast League were moved into the Southwest Division for the playoffs this season. Also in the Southwest are the Crestview, Empire, Freeway and Sea View leagues.

We will learn how good this Corona del Mar team can be soon enough. The Sea Kings have nonleague games against Dana Hills, Newport Harbor and El Toro.

How high for the Highlanders?

La Habra fell short of its lofty standards the past two seasons. The Highlanders won four straight CIF titles, from 2007 through ’10, but lost in the semifinals in 2011 and in the second round in 2012 and ’13.

La Habra will be favored to win another Freeway League championship this season. It has several fine returnees, led by quarterback Eric Barriere, who was all-league first team last season as a sophomore.

With the Sunset League out of the Southwest Division, the path to a CIF title game could be easier for the Highlanders.

We will get a good feel for them from a strong nonleague schedule that includes El Toro, La Mirada and Mission Viejo.

Contact the writer: sfryer@ocregister.com