The most formidable presence at Haas Pavilion on Monday night was a 6-foot-8, 280-pound high school senior from Elk Grove.
Arik Armstead, rated the nation’s top overall college football prospect by Scout.com, wants to be a two-sport athlete in college.
Cal hopes he decides to become the next Tony Gonzalez and bring his multisport talents to Berkeley.
“I know about Tony Gonzalez,” said Armstead, referring to the future NFL Hall of Fame tight end. “He was a guy who did it at a high level in both sports, and he went to Cal, so it’s big.”
Armstead apparently is so good he can’t decide whether he wants to play offensive tackle or defensive end in college. Make no mistake, he also wants to play power forward.
“It’s definitely serious,” Armstead said. “I’m going to play both in college so the balance of both programs will be a big factor in my decision.”
Among 21 recruits who visited Cal for football two weekends ago, Armstead said he’s talked with both Jeff Tedford and Mike Montgomery about his desire to play two sports.
Both are on board with the idea, he said. Tedford “is good with everything. He said he and coach Montgomery would work it out. Cal’s definitely a serious contender.”
Addendum: Armstead is 6'8" and was the third highest rated basketball recruit in Northern California. He played in one basketball game at Oregon. 4 minutes and 2 points. Eventually someone pulls these kids aside and explains to them that they can make millions in the NFL and will never be a serious basketball player. NOC, I know - I've just seen this scenario from the local school before.