It used to be one or two Ventura County football teams took advantage a loophole in CIF guidelines, forsook preseason scrimmages and played for keeps one week before the traditional start of the high school season.

The number of area teams scheduling Week Zero games this fall has increased to 10.

Ventura High and Camarillo are the latest schools to make the break. Ventura coach Brad Steward and Camarillo coach Dennis Riedmiller agreed to move their game from Week 4 to Friday at 7 p.m. at Larrabee Stadium.

"We'll see whether we like it," said Ventura coach Brad Steward. "If we enjoy it, we'll continue to play this early."

There are six other Week Zero games on the 2007 schedule.

Moorpark, a CIF finalist the last two years, kicks off the season Thursday at home against defending Suburban League champion Mayfair.

Five other games, including two all-Ventura County matchups, round out the schedule this weekend.

Getting a jump-start on the season has its advantages.

Such as flexibility with the maximum allowed 25 practices and bye weeks during the season to get a breather.

"I wanted two-a-day practices. I think it gives the guys a chance to develop toughness," said Steward. "Because school starts so early (Aug. 21), it has been four or five years since we've had two-a-days."

For first-year Hueneme coach Steve Ruedaflores, Friday can't come soon enough.

"I like to get the ball running quick," said Ruedaflores. "It helps kill the anxiety of playing that first game. The Friday night game helps keep the kids focused the first week of school."

It was by accident that Hueneme and Santa Clara switched to Week Zero last year.

Because of a misunderstanding, the two schools had the game scheduled on different weeks during the regular season. By the time that school officials noticed the discrepancy, the only available option was the earliest date possible.

"That worked out well," said Santa Clara coach Fran Fredette.

The 27-21 win kick-started Santa Clara to a 10-3 record and its best season in nearly two decades.

"What I like about it is that both teams are in the same level of preparation," said Fredette.

There was no accident Villanova began searching for Week Zero games three years ago.

"It is easier to find comparable opponents at this time of the year," said Villanova coach John Muller.

As a member of the five-team Frontier League, Villanova has to deal with a bye during the league season.

"It was tough for us when we were an independent to schedule games that late in the year," said Muller.

With a bye in Week 8, Villanova coaches have an opportunity to see other teams in league during a prime time of the season.

Week 4 appeared to be a perfect time for Ventura to have a bye week.

"That's a time during the season when you can heal some bumps and bruises," said Steward. "We wanted it before we played our last preleague game."

Just like last year, Oaks Christian scheduled its bye the week before its Sept. 21 game against St. Bonaventure. Westlake wisely has a bye next week following its road trip to Hawaii to play Waipahu.

Bye weeks aren't always helpful.

"If you have momentum, it's hard to keep the team up to that level," said Fredette. "You lose a little bit."

One concession for playing Week Zero games is the scrimmages that the CIF allows on the same week.

Not that Steward minds.

"We were hesitant to run the plays that we thought would be good for games," said Steward.

Coaches can evaluate talent better in games than scrimmages, Fredette believes. That season opener gives teams and players opportunities to improve quicker, he said.

On the flip side, Pacifica coach Donnie Rea thought enough of the scrimmages to back away from Week Zero games that the program had played in the past.

"We take a real casual approach to our scrimmage with Newbury Park," Rea said. "We're practicing for the real deal. We go over all of the game procedures."

Rea also thought it was more important to give the players and coaches another week off before the start of fall practice.

"It seemed like that if you didn't take a break right after the school year, you were going right into passing league," said Rea, "and there wasn't much of a break until we started up again. I thought our players got tired of the constant grind. It was good for the staff to get an extra week off."