Crenshaw High offensive linemen stand together

They’ve known each other since kindergarten and started comparing report cards in fifth grade. Center Corey Robinson and left offensive tackle Shannon Penn have 3.8 grade-point averages and rank sixth and ninth, respectively, among the Crenshaw High senior class.

Each is trying to become the first in his family to make it to college, and this afternoon in the 1 p.m. City Section Division I championship game against Harbor City Narbonne at the Coliseum, they’ll be the key blockers for a Cougars offense that is averaging 50 points a game.

It takes going behind the scenes to understand what makes this 13-0 Crenshaw team different from some City Section powerhouses of the past, and one clue is the unity and cohesiveness of the players.

“We’re just together,” Robinson said. “We’re a team. We all click. We’re all friends. We’re like brothers out there. I’m going to play my hardest for my brother, and he’s going to play for me.”

Said Penn: “This program has increased due to all the community support, the field, the lights. We appreciate it. We’re truthfully thankful for everything that is going on.”

Coach Robert Garrett has run the Crenshaw program since 1988, and it’s hard to believe he can find two more quality individuals than the 6-foot-3, 230-pound Robinson and the 6-3, 220-pound Penn.

“They’re real humble, kind-spirited, real conscientious,” Garrett said. “They’re well respected and not just by football players. They are guys of little words. They don’t boast and brag. They’re silent leaders, and I’m grateful to have them [be] part of my life.”

While football is a game they enjoy, each understands their futures are tied to what they do in the classroom.

“I’ve just been pushed very hard by my parents,” Robinson said.

Added Penn: “Everybody is relying on me. My mom, knowing it was tough to raise five kids, she wants me to be the first to go to college. I want it. Everybody else wants it. My grades will lead the pathway.”

Robinson has earned mostly A’s since sixth grade, and that dedication is also displayed on the field, where he’s precise in his blocks and doesn’t let up until the whistle blows.

Penn protects the blind side of quarterback Marquis Thompson, and he knows what’s at stake when he fails.

“I like my quarterback to feel safe,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity to shine.”

While linemen don’t get much attention unless they are called for a holding penalty or give up a sack, they’re the ones who enable the skill-position players to do their stuff, which for Crenshaw means turning in big plays.

Of all positions, the line is where Crenshaw is most improved. The players are far more mobile and in better shape than linemen of the past. They also are connected.

“The play of the line has changed tremendously because we hang out,” Penn said. “We talk about our plays. We draw our plays. We communicate on the field. We call out blitzes.”

All that and more has put the Cougars one win away from probably becoming the first City Section team to earn a state championship bowl berth.

But for Penn and Robinson, the real hard work has come in the classroom, and it has put them in position to succeed long after their playing careers are over.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com

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