







Guss Armstead wrapped his arms around his son Armond, trying desperately to ease the pain of a lost dream as the tears flowed from his boy.

Lying in a hospital bed almost two years ago, Armond, then 20, had been given the latest information in a dizzying series of events. In the aftermath of a heart attack, the then-USC junior defensive tackle was told, in so many words, it was time to choose a different path.

"The doctor basically said, 'You're a smart kid, find another job, do something else,' " Armstead, remembering the day in December 2010, said by phone from Toronto. "That hurt so much to hear … I started saying things I wouldn't normally say."

Armstead, who will try to help the CFL's Argonauts win the Grey Cup on Sunday and then hopefully use that as a springboard to the NFL, wailed that football was his life and that it was being taken away. That's when his father leaned in, trying like any parent to soak up some of the hurt at a time when it was all too scary and confusing.

"I embraced him and held him like he was 3 years old again," the elder Armstead said by phone from his home in Sacramento, Calif., where Armond was raised. "There's not much you can really say at a moment like that. You just let the emotions be released and you remind him that, as a family, we'll find a way to get through this. You validate all the love you've given him in the past and say, if there was no football in his future, we were going to get through this.

"You never want to see your child broken and hopeless. But Armond isn't just a football player. That's not how we raised him. He's a bright, articulate young man who plays football. His life is not football. But when you play at a high level like he did at the time, sometimes you start to believe that."

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As it turns out, Armstead wasn't done with football.

Armstead has returned to the gridiron after discovering that the problem was not with his body, but with how he was being treated. According to a lawsuit Armstead has filed against USC, his heart attack was the result of being administered too much Toradol, an anti-inflammatory medication. Doctors haven't found a physical defect that caused the attack of the former prep phenomenon.

So now, armed with a little more perspective and appreciation for his athletic gifts, the 6-foot-5, 300-pound Armstead is back in action. After taking the 2011 season off and then leaving USC, the results have been impressive, including six sacks (tied for ninth in the league) and a selection to the CFL East All-Star squad as a rookie.

The six sacks may not sound like a lot, but this is where perspective is necessary. The Canadian version of the game is much more wide open, played on a bigger field by generally smaller men. Of the eight players who had more sacks than Armstead, the heaviest of all of them was only 270 pounds.

Armstead kept pace because he's unusually quick for a man of his size, in part because his father is a trainer who works primarily with NBA players. Growing, Armstead was drilled for the hardwood, not the gridiron.

"He developed his quickness throughout his life and that's showing up now," Guss Armstead said.

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