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With the start of the football season three days away, Santa Margarita linemen Niniva Nicholson, Manoah Faupusa and Isaia Vandermade had their offseason transfers to the Trinity League school cleared by the CIF Southern Section on Tuesday.
The section website lists the three players as having made valid changes of residences, a key requirement to receive athletic eligibility.
The linemen are expected starters for Santa Margarita as it plays host to Mission Viejo at Trabuco Hills High in the MaxPreps game of the week on Friday, Aug. 22.
Nicholson (6-3, 285), a senior from JSerra, is an offensive lineman committed to Arizona State.
Faupusa (6-3 350), a senior from St. Ignatius in Northern California, is a two-way lineman committed to Arizona.
Vandermade (6-4, 270), a junior from St. Ignatius, is a two-way lineman and son of Santa Margarita assistant coach Lenny Vandermade (Mater Dei/USC).
All three players were selected to the OCVarsity Hot 150 of impact players, with Nicholson and Faupusa at No. 17 and No. 18, respectively, and Vandermade at No. 83.
Two other notable transfer linemen at Santa Margarita — USC commit Simote Katoanga from JSerra and offensive lineman Raymond Jacobs from Rancho Cucamonga — are listed by the CIF-SS as incomplete, or not cleared.