Somehow, game goes on and Reseda gets win over Crenshaw

Around 2 a.m. early Friday, Crenshaw football coach Robert Garrett finally ended his day. His personal computer had crashed and the Los Angeles Unified School District help desk couldn’t help, so he used his cellphone to finally finish typing up his 21-man football roster that needed to be emailed for a season-opening game against Reseda.

When it comes to making sacrifices for the good of the students, there’s nothing like hearing the stories from City Section coaches as they valiantly try anything and everything to get their players onto the field to play a long-delayed spring season.

Eagle Rock, Van Nuys and Washington Prep are among schools that didn’t make it. Friday’s Roosevelt-Bell game was canceled hours after a positive COVID-19 test was confirmed. Carson couldn’t play because it didn’t have enough helmets.

For all the obstacles and strange sightings, such as a first-year Reseda player not having his jersey on properly and players having to schedule weekly tests on their own, there was the scene Friday night at Crenshaw of a game actually taking place against all odds.

In a game with hard hits and big plays, Reseda came away with a 22-14 victory. Androw Nesem had a 72-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to break the game open and also had a six-yard touchdown run. Quarterback Kameran Charles sprinted down the left side 39 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter.

The execution was impressive considering Garrett and Reseda coach Alonso Arreola weren’t allowed to have their players practice from March 2020 to last month.

In the second quarter, the inexperience and rustiness began to show with a flurry of penalty flags.

At one point, Crenshaw’s offense was called for delay of game and consecutive illegal procedure penalties. The two teams combined for 15 penalties in the first half, with Reseda holding an 8-0 lead on a six-yard touchdown run by Nesem and two-point conversion reception by Ayo Olabade.

The challenge for both teams revolved around the offensive lines. Neither quarterback had much time to find a receiver. Olabade, playing defensive end, was in on five sacks of Crenshaw quarterback Jasper Anderson.

The Cougars finally broke through for a touchdown in the third quarter on an eight-yard run from Centrell Wise. But the big play was a 32-yard catch and run from sophomore Andrew Wynn in which he looked like a Crenshaw star from the past, breaking tackle after tackle while showing speed.

Each player was allowed to bring two guests to the game. Both teams’ fans sat in bleachers opposite of the Crenshaw press box. There was an eerie silence for much of the pregame and first quarter because the PA system wasn’t working.

Crenshaw suited up 21 players and Reseda 25. Both teams have smaller rosters because of the pandemic. Reseda lost its top lineman when he opted to focus on a full-time job. Crenshaw has had difficulty filling its quarterback position.

“Do you have any tough juice?” Garrett asked the person handing out water at halftime.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.