49ers' Arik Armstead motivated by brother's lost football career

SANTA CLARA - Fortunately Arik Armstead has broader shoulders than most.

When the 49ers’ first-round pick begins his NFL journey this fall, the 6-foot-7, 292-pound defensive end will also be living out the football dreams of his older brother, who saw his promising career cut short by health issues last summer.

“I idolized him and wanted to grow up and be like him someday,” Arik, 21, said of Armond Armstead, 24.

An All-American and four-star recruit in high school, Armond was a contributor from the moment he stepped on the USC campus in 2008. Also a defensive lineman, Armond was a starter by his sophomore year with the Trojans, but two heart attacks by age 23 ended his NFL aspirations.

“God had a different plan for Armond,” said their father, Guss Armstead. “I think part of Arik’s drive is to make his brother proud and continue to grow as a player and carry on that legacy.”

Before Arik rose to stardom at Oregon or Pleasant Grove High in Elk Grove, he was the kid brother who Armond said was “always happy and ready to play.” He tagged along on his brother’s recruiting trips, hoping to follow in Armond’s footsteps.

Now the roles are reversed a bit. Armond joined Arik in San Diego for his pre-draft preparations and has dedicated much of his time to his younger brother.

“He wants to take the time he has and pour that into his brother,” Guss Armstead said.

Joe Cattolico, who coached both brothers at Pleasant Grove, says that brotherly connection will push both of them to success.

“I think he feels like he’s getting to do some of the things that his brother was kept from doing and I think he’ll use that as a positive,” Cattolico said of Arik. “His brother’s going to be a very successful person in life as well, he’s just going to be doing it in different avenues.”

Last month, Armond reached an undisclosed settlement with USC after suing the school, alleging its use of pain-killing drugs led to his heart issues and cost him a potentially lucrative career.

He suffered his first heart attack while at USC in 2011 and wasn’t medically cleared to play his senior year. He went undrafted and spent a year in the Canadian Football League to prove his worth-and his health. He was an all-star for the Toronto Argonauts and part of a Grey Cup championship team.

That caught the eye of the New England Patriots, who signed him after that season. But Armond’s health issues resurfaced. He underwent surgery to repair a hole in his heart, and a subsequent infection caused him to miss the 2013 season. After suffering a second heart attack, he decided it was time to retire in July 2014 at age 23.

Armond said he’s in good health now and had no issues working out with his brother during his pre-draft preparations. He’s researching graduate schools while serving an internship with a housing development company in Sacramento, but prefers to keep the attention steered toward Arik.

“It’s not really about me,” Armond said. “I’m just excited for him more than anything and proud of him to be able to come this far.”

In Arik, Armond sees “a bigger version of all the skill sets that I have.” Arik has 2 inches on Armond’s 6-5 build and room to exceed his last playing weight of 305 pounds.

“It’s funny to say with somebody the size that he is and the maturity that he is, but he’s a baby,” Cattolico said of Arik. “He’s got some growing and some physical maturing to do.”

Both brothers played basketball throughout high school and Arik extended that into his first two years at Oregon. That’s not a surprise considering their father’s background.

Guss Armstead played basketball at Sacramento State, coached briefly and now runs 2 The Hoop Basketball Services. He’s trained NBA players such as Warriors center Festus Ezeli, New Orleans Pelicans forward Ryan Anderson and Los Angeles Clippers forward Matt Barnes.

“Arik was the kid that was, ‘Dad, if you’ve got a 7 o’clock workout, wake me up because I want to go,’” Guss said. “He was always the guy that was attached to my hip.”

Cattolico witnessed that work ethic from both Arik and Armond and easily raves about all of the Armsteads, who were among the first people he met when he moved to Elk Grove to begin coaching at Pleasant Grove.

“This is reflective of his whole family, but Arik’s one of the best young people I’ve ever been around in 20 years of high school education,” Cattolico said.

The brothers share the same qualities of toughness. Armond played through a shoulder injury at USC, possibly to his detriment considering the potential affects the pain-killer Toradol had on him. (His lawsuit alleged his heart attack was caused by being overtreated with the drug and he was not told of its FDA warnings of cardiovascular risk.)

Arik played with an ankle injury at times last year at Oregon and, as a high school senior, played 13 games with an injured shoulder.

“He could’ve shut it down and gotten healthy for college,” Cattolico said. “But he knew it made a big difference to his teammates and to the program in general.”

That type of dedication to others is one way these brothers remain connected. If Armond still struggles with his own loss of football, he doesn’t show it. Big brother is too busy admiring how little brother has taken advantage of his talent through smart choices and hard work.

“For it all to come together for him,” Armond said, “it’s really exciting to see.”