Jeremiah Armstead, a sophomore guard for the Bulldogs, has become the inspirational story of this year’s NCAA men’s basketball tournament. Armstead attends Fisk University, an HBCU that became the first historically Black college to gain accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) in 1930.
Armstead has only scored an average of 0.7 points on 18.2% shooting during 12 games this season. However, his story has captured everyone’s attention. It goes beyond basketball and serves as a reminder to all of us that good things can happen, even in difficult circumstances.
Early Life And Journey To The Final Four
Born in Atlanta, Armstead and his family moved to Philadelphia, where they lived until their move to California, which didn’t go as planned. Mindy Brooks, Armstead’s mother, believed she was moving to California to live with a close family friend.
Once in California, she discovered the family friend had left and moved to Texas, leaving the family stranded. His mother and two siblings were along with Armstead.
On their first night, the family had to sleep in their car by the beach, which really stuck with Armstead. After being caught sleeping in their vehicle in a no-parking zone, the police officer’s actions were commendable.
“He let us stay there,” Armstead said. “So just encounters like that, with like everyday good people, it just helped me to not, like, be mad at the world and what I got going on and just wait, which I did. I waited four or five years, and now it’s something finally changing.”
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The family spent some time living in their car until they saved enough money to stay in a hotel for a few weeks. When their savings ran out, Armstead and his family had to move to a shelter for domestic violence victims in Santa Monica.
During this time, Armstead’s mother drove him to school, which was a 40-minute drive, five days a week. The shelter eventually couldn’t keep the family, as Armstead found himself living back in the car.
Armstead didn’t have the opportunity to play for a high school basketball team until he was a senior because his family had to keep moving. It was only during his first and second semesters that they were able to settle down in an apartment.
“I could just wake up at six, go to school, catch the bus and everything,” Armstead said about finally getting an apartment. “I didn’t have to worry about my mom waiting outside in the car all day or anything like that. So the mental fatigue was kind of wearing off.”
Armstead attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School in Long Beach, California, during his senior year. It was during this time that he met Stephen Bernstein, the CEO of We Educated Brilliant Minds, which is a non-profit organization that assists teenagers in gaining admission to Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Former NBA player Kenny Anderson is the coach of Fisk University’s men’s basketball team, and when told about Armstead’s skills, he wanted to meet him. This led to Armstead applying to the university.
“I didn’t think anything was going to happen when I met Mr. Bernstein because it was so short notice,” Armstead said. “There was only like a week left before the first semester of school. He did some amazing things. I applied for Fisk on a Friday, got accepted Saturday, and I flew out that Monday.”
Armstead is now in his second year at Fisk University, and he has just made history. He was the first HBCU or NAIA player to receive the Most Courageous Award, named after Perry Wallace. Wallace was the first Black basketball player in the SEC and the first Black athlete to complete a full four-year career in the SEC in any sport.
One incredible perk of winning this award means Armstead will be in attendance at the Final Four.
“I don’t think it’ll sink in fully until I get there to the Final Four and experience everything,” Armstead said.
Armstead is taking his 18-year-old brother Marcus as his guest on a trip to the Final Four. This is a wonderful opportunity for the two brothers, who previously shared a car, to sleep and enjoy something special together.
Regarding the rest of Armstead’s family, they now reside in their own apartment, and there are no indications of them losing their home. This is an incredible conclusion to a story that had a tragic beginning.
In reality, this is not the end but just the beginning for Jeremiah Armstead.
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