CITY SLICKERS : Albert Fann of Cleveland and Khalid Ali of Granada Hills, With the City Section at Their Feet and Valley 4-A Title in Their Grasp, Are Suited Up for Head-On Battle of Running Backs Tonight

They are kindred spirits on a collision course.

Albert Fann is a 6-2 1/2, 215-pound man-child with the size and speed to turn defenders into Fann-tailing shrimp.

Khalid Ali is 5-11 and 185 pounds of deceptive packaging who scoots through holes as though he had commanded, “Open, sesame,” like Ali Baba.

Fann, of Cleveland High, and Ali, of Granada Hills, lead unbeaten teams against each another tonight in a game that may decide the Valley 4-A League title.

They are the slick and sleek of the City Section, and their six-game numbers are strikingly similar. Fann has rushed for 810 yards and scored 12 touchdowns. Ali has rushed for 793 yards and scored 13 touchdowns.

Canoga Park nose guard LaMonte Simmons, the best player on a team that has been beaten by Cleveland and Granada Hills, had trouble with both.

“Ali was a slashing-type runner with deceiving speed,” he said. “Fann is a difficult runner to bring down. He’ll get around you if he can, but will run you down, no problem. They are the best we’ve faced or will face this year.”

Fann and Ali are just as slick off the field. Talkative and magnanimous, they lead the league in diplomacy.

Says Fann: “The principles I live by determine my success. For everything I am given, I give back in return. It translates on the football field like this: If my line opens holes, I give in return by gaining as many yards as possible. Otherwise, I would be in debt to my line.”

Says Ali: “I motivate my teammates, my line, through positive reinforcement. I tell them they are good over and over again. This is a team game and without my line, I am nothing.”

Despite their modest claims to the contrary, Fann and Ali, both seniors, are the primary reasons Cleveland (6-0) and Granada Hills (5-0-1) have not lost.

Albert Fann needed a ride home after practice early last season and asked Steve Landress, the new football coach at Cleveland, for a lift.

“There are a lot of inner-city kids who attend Cleveland through a magnet program,” Landress says. “I figured I might be driving Albert to the middle of L.A.”

Landress was on the freeway headed for Los Angeles when Fann told him to turn the car around.

“We pulled up to a house in Northridge with a Rolls Royce and a brand-new Cadillac in the driveway and a maid in the kitchen,” Landress recalls.

Albert is the youngest of actor Al Fann’s six children. Yet those who know him see no evidence of a spoiled rich kid.

“The only way you’d know Albert was from a TV family is that he’s a comedian in his own way,” says Bob Braswell, basketball coach at Cleveland. “His Three Stooges imitation is great. He cheers people up. He wants to be treated like an average guy and does not flaunt his wealth.”

Fann is also a top player on the Cleveland basketball team. Midway through last season, the Cavaliers were to play highly regarded Fairfax without star forward Trevor Wilson. “It looked bleak,” Braswell says. “I admit my attitude was down.”

The team met before practice with the game two days away. “Albert took over the meeting,” Braswell recalls. “He got everybody together and talked about our goals. Albert is a born leader.”

Cleveland defeated Fairfax, 81-80, to begin a six-game winning streak.

“The speech wasn’t something I planned on doing,” Fann says. “But at the time, it was my place to pick up the team.”

Now his place is the football field and Fann is still the man.

“Guys this age look to one or two players on a team for leadership and guidance,” Landress says. “This team looks to Albert.”

And Albert looks to his father--who is currently appearing in the ABC sitcom “He’s the Mayor”--for what he calls, “rules to live by.”

“My father has a great deal of influence on my life,” Fann says. “He’s pushing me. I go by his rules and principles and they work.

Earning what you receive seems to be Rule No. 1.

“I was spoiled when I was younger but it wore off,” he says. “At first, I used to cry for everything I wanted. But if your parents are always giving you something, you feel like a criminal.”

Fann is thoughtful and deliberate when speaking of responsibility and earning his way in the world. Braswell has noticed, too.

“Albert is very intense and sincere,” Braswell says. “His sincerity, that’s what impresses me the most.”

Khalid Ali bounced out of a car onto the Cleveland High campus Wednesday and was confronted by two smiling Cavalier coaches. He was on the rival campus because he’d had his picture taken with Fann.

“So this is Mr. Ali,” said one coach.

“I thought you’d be a full-fledged Arab,” said the other.

Ali responded with a polite smile, but he could have explained that his father, born Willie Milan, was a civil rights activist and follower of Malcolm X in the 1960s. Milan converted to Islam, changed his surname to Ali and named one son Khalid, a traditional Muslim name meaning “immortal survivor.”

“My father does not promote violence but is very concerned with civil rights,” says Ali, whose father is a supervisor of security at a 3M plant in Los Angeles. “We are very close. My father is interested in his son, not just his son’s football career.”

Without slighting Ali’s ability, the Cleveland coaches talked up Sean Brown, Granada Hills’ tight end. “Brown and Albert are probably the best athletes in the Valley,” one coach said in a matter-of-fact tone.

During the drive back to Granada Hills, Ali laughed and exclaimed, “The psychology those coaches were using. Whew!”

Two years ago, Ali may have reacted less calmly to veiled barbs from opposing coaches. His coach at Granada Hills, Darryl Stroh, has taken note of Ali’s growth.

“I don’t know if I’ve coached a kid who has come so far in the area of attitude,” says Stroh, who has coached Ali for two years on varsity and one year on the B team. “He was not my favorite person as a 10th-grader. There were numerous situations where we had difficulty. He was kind of undisciplined and immature.

“Now he is totally cooperative. I couldn’t ask for more. And he’s an emotional leader.”

Ali agrees with Stroh’s assessment and related an example of his immaturity as a sophomore.

“I got a free pizza for being player of the week and I ate the entire thing about two hours before the next game,” Ali recalls. “The first time I carried the ball I got hit and couldn’t get up. Coach Stroh looked down at me and asked me what was wrong. I said, ‘I ate a pizza, coach.’ ”

Recalls Stroh: “He looked like a bloated cow.”

Stroh remembers other problems and the way Ali overcame them.

“Khalid had as bad a pair of hands as I’ve seen as a 10th-grader,” he said. “He couldn’t catch a cold in a driving hailstorm. ‘You really need to work,’ I told him. He put in the work and has turned into one of our top receivers. It’s a tribute to his willingness to put in time.”

Ali is the team’s second-leading receiver with 11 catches for 128 yards and 1 touchdown.

Ali lives in Los Angeles and has been bused to Valley schools since the fourth grade. He leaves for school at 6 a.m. and returns at about 6:30 p.m. “Guys kid me and say they are still sleeping when I’m at my bus stop,” he says.

A classic overachiever, Ali is the object of good-natured ribbing from teammates. “When I break a run and the team is watching the film,” he says, “guys yell, ‘It’s in slow motion.’ ”

But eyes quickly turn to Ali when someone in the huddle doesn’t know what to do on a given play.

“He knows the offense better than anyone,” offensive coordinator Tom Harp says. “We call him ‘Coach Ali.’ He’s curious and wants to know the responsibility of every player.”

Intrigued by the strategy of football, Ali drew up a play this week. Harp liked it enough to include it in the Highlander offense.

“Our draw play gets me a lot of yards,” Ali says. “I told Coach Harp, ‘Now they’re on to it, so let’s do a fake draw and pass. He told me to draw it up.”

Stroh also notes the way Ali is able to draw the most out of his own--and his teammates--ability.

Says Stroh: “When I think back on Khalid, it won’t be for the pizza incident. I’ll remember a play in the Kennedy game. We called his number on the left side and there was no hole, no blocking, everybody kind of gave up. Out of the maze comes Khalid’s body, twisting and kicking. He simply would not go down without a fight.

“Here’s a guy who had a lot of friction with me early on. Now he’s a senior and has really got it together. He’s progressed not only physically but as a total person.”

Being glib guys, Fann and Ali both want to be on television or radio when they are through with football.

Says Ali: “I’d like to be a sportscaster or a coach. Wherever the green is. I like to communicate. During off-season I worked at the American Radio Network. I was taught how to broadcast and did feature shows and sports commentary. I did a story on Texas Christian University players getting paid to play football. They said it would be aired somewhere but I haven’t heard it. I think it played in Altoona, Pa.”

Says Fann: “My heart is set on athletics. When I’m through playing I’d like to get into sports announcing and acting.”

College, of course, must precede bumping Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen from NBC. Fann, because of his size and speed, is certain to obtain a Division I scholarship. Ali, because of his lack of same, may have to attend a Division II school or a junior college. Not surprisingly, he is prepared to do so.

“It’s a bumpy road to success,” Ali says. “Not everybody starts out with the big boys or on prime time. You never appreciate success until you’ve failed first.”

Stroh has not counted out Ali obtaining a scholarship to a major college, however. “You never want to say a kid can’t do something. Sure, he has to get bigger and stronger to make it possible. I know there is interest. He plays bigger and stronger than he is. Because he’s bused here, Khalid hasn’t had an opportunity to do much weight lifting. With his frame he could get bigger.”

Nearly 100 major colleges have contacted Landress about Fann. “I’ve pushed him,” Landress said. “Nebraska wants him to play strong safety. Can you imagine what he’ll be like after a couple years in a program like Nebraska’s with the weights and everything else?”

Fann enjoys playing basketball as much as football but realizes a 6-2 1/2 running back is more appealing to colleges than a 6-2 1/2 forward. “I told Albert that even if his first love is basketball, his future is in football,” Braswell says.

USC recruiting coordinator Dick Laguens says that both players are on the Trojans’ recruiting list. “Everything about Fann is impressive,” he said. “And Ali is a gamer, which we weigh very heavily.”

Today, college and career seem as far away to Fann and Ali as Pluto. Today they play the most important high school game of their lives.

Says Fann: “It will be a war on the field. I plan on running wild.”

Says Ali: “I want to make a lot of noise, gain a lot of yards. It’s going to be a great game.” A BATTLE OF TWO RUNNING BACKS THE MARKS ALI AND FANN TAKE INTO TONIGHT’S GAME AT CLEVELAND RUSHING

Name Attempts Yds. Avg. TDs Longest Avg./Game Albert Fann 126 810 6.4 12 70 135.0 Khalid Ali 101 793 7.9 11 78 132.2

RECEIVING

Name Catches Yds. Avg. TDs Longest Avg./Game Albert Fann 6 85 14.2 0 28 14.2 Khalid Ali 11 128 11.6 1 29 21.3