Former NFL pass rusher Aldon Smith spent time on what would be the final day of his life donating food to a charity that feeds the homeless.

The San Francisco 49ers announced on Saturday that Smith, who played in 50 games during his six-year career, died at the age of 36. Just hours before he was found unresponsive, Smith unexpectedly dropped off 10 pizzas to CHAM Deliverance Ministry, a San Jose, Calif., charity that feeds the homeless.

Amir Shirazi, a friend of Smith’s who picked up on Saturday to make the surprise delivery, spoke to the San Francisco Chronicle about the charitable donation before sharing the details of finding him unresponsive in his car.

49ERS ANNOUNCE DEATH OF ALDON SMITH AT 36, ONCE THE FASTEST PLAYER TO REACH 30 SACKS IN NFL HISTORY

“He was a very sweet, caring, loving giant,” Shirazi said. “That if you really knew him, you’d know who he truly is.”

After dropping off the pizzas, Shirazi drove them to a grocery store and then back to his home. He explained to the outlet that he quickly ran inside to turn on some lights, and when he returned to the car, Smith was slumped over in his seat.

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“I came out and he was basically dead in my front seat,” Shirazi said. “I’m just in shock.”

While Smith has a history of substance abuse, Shirazi said that he had not seen the former NFL player use drugs on Saturday and had only seen him smoke marijuana occasionally over the years. He said he believed that Smith’s death was a “natural death.”

“My impression was that this is a young man that wanted to help the homeless, which was great,” Scott Wagers, the co-founder of CHAM Deliverance Ministry, told the outlet. “When the 49ers and people like that want to help the community, that’s everything.”

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Smith was drafted seventh overall in the 2011 NFL Draft out of Missouri, and made an immediate impact as a rookie, picking up 14.0 sacks and forcing two fumbles in 16 games. The next year he set a 49ers’ franchise record with 19.5 sacks and was named a First-Team All-Pro while leading the team to Super Bowl XLVII.

Smith reached 30 career sacks in just 27 games, making him the fastest player in NFL history to do so, breaking a record previously held by Hall of Famer Reggie White.

In 2013, Smith voluntarily entered rehab and missed five games. In 2014, he served a nine-game suspension for violations of the NFL’s substance abuse and personal conduct policies.

In 2015, the 49ers released Smith in August following his third DUI arrest before he was signed weeks later by the Oakland Raiders.

Smith remained indefinitely suspended from the NFL for four full seasons while dealing with legal and personal troubles. He made a return in 2020 and played a full season with the Dallas Cowboys, starting in all 16 games.

The U.S. men’s soccer team isn’t only trying to win games in this World Cup. It is trying to win hearts and minds as well.

“We want the game to grow,” star midfielder Christian Pulisic said. “We want to get Americans excited to watch this game, to watch our team. That’s obviously a big goal of ours. And being successful would give that the best boost.”

The Americans certainly got a great start Friday, opening the second World Cup played on U.S. soil with a dominant 4-1 win over Paraguay. It was one of the most complete performances the American men have had on the sport’s biggest stage, with Folarin Balogun scoring twice, Pulisic setting up two goals, and just one momentary lapse on defense separating goalkeeper Matt Freese from a shutout.

The U.S. passed well, defended well and, most important, was clinical and dangerous in front of the net, finishing well.

“It was a real statement,” Balogun said. “And that’s what we wanted. I’m very delighted with the overall performance.”

The effort was warmly received by a sold-out crowd of 70,492 at SoFi Stadium, with record-setting crowds watching on TV throughout the country.

Fox Sports announced 15.99 million watched the win, making it the most-viewed U.S. World Cup match on English-language television.

And the Spanish-language broadcast drew a total audience of 8.9 million across Telemundo, Peacock and Telemundo’s streaming platforms. It was the most-watched U.S. World Cup match on Spanish-language television network platforms, harking back to the 1994 World Cup, the first played in the U.S. that also attracted record TV audiences.

At 38, captain Tim Ream is the only member of the team who was alive in 1994, but he and his younger teammates repeatedly have been reminded of the impact that tournament had on soccer in the U.S. That 1994 team won just one game, though, scored just two goals and didn’t make it past the round of 16.

This team is convinced it can do better — on and off the field.

Fans cheer after U.S. beat Paraguay to open the World Cup Friday at SoFi Stadium.

(Kelvin Kuo/Los Angeles Times)

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“It’s trying to be an inspiration for the next generation and grow the game,” midfielder Tyler Adams said. “I think we have the opportunity to do that.”

Part of that is kick-starting the kind of interest in soccer that briefly swept the country during the first U.S. World Cup 32 years ago. And this team certainly energized fans Friday.

“Having this crowd around us, seeing the red, white and blue, it’s awesome,” Pulisic said. “It’s really pushing us forward. We just hope it continues like that.”

It will if Pulisic and Co. continue playing like that.

The U.S. controlled the ball for nearly an hour of the 90 minutes, completed more than twice as many passes as Paraguay and took almost twice as many shots. It was a game that was as attractive and inviting as it was one-sided, one that might turn the most skeptical viewer into a fan.

It was, midfielder Weston McKennie said, the kind of game that could push the U.S. closer to becoming a proper soccer nation.

American midfielder Weston McKennie outruns two Paraguay defenders.

(Kelvin Kuo/Los Angeles Times)

“Because it’s a World Cup and it’s in America, people came out,” McKennie said. “We’re OK with that. There’s a lot of people that maybe have never come out to support us. But hopefully today, with this performance, they can connect with us.

“You feel this electricity in the stadium and the passion. That’s one thing that’s going to change soccer here.”

Pulisic and McKennie helped put the U.S. in front to stay in the seventh minute, although the goal was credited to Paraguayan midfielder Damián Bobadilla, who got his right foot in front of a McKennie pass intended for Balogun and deflected it into the net for an own goal. Pulisic made the whole sequence happen, however, pushing the ball between a pair of defenders before poking it on to McKennie in the center of the box.

Balogun scored twice in the final 20 minutes of the first half, one-timing a perfect pass from Pulisic in from the penalty spot in the 31st minute, then running on to a perfectly weighted through ball from Malik Tillman and avoiding two defenders to line a left-footed shot into the top left corner five minutes into stoppage time.

The brace was the first of Balogun’s international career and came in his World Cup debut before a crowd of family and friends, a cheering section he saluted from behind the goal line after scoring.

“I had to sort through a lot of ticket [requests.] It’s a dream night, you know? I’ve not been able to take it all in,” said Balogun, whose brace marked the first multigoal game by an American in the World Cup since 1930.

And that wasn’t the only history the U.S. made Friday. Defender Chris Richards, whose status for the opener was in doubt after he tore two ligaments in his left ankle a month ago, completed all 83 of his passes, the most without a miss in a World Cup game since 1966.

Mauricio pulled one of those goals back for Paraguay in the 73rd minute, before Gio Reyna closed the scoring with his first World Cup goal deep in stoppage time.

Pulisic, who said he took a kick to his left calf in the first half, was replaced by Sebastian Berhalter to start the second. Pulisic showed no signs of injury while talking with reporters after the match, and coach Mauricio Pochettino is hopeful the injury will not limit Pulisic during the next match Friday against Australia.

For the U.S., the commanding win over Paraguay was just the start. The best, the players promise, is yet to come.

Fans fill SoFi Stadium during the U.S. World Cup win over Paraguay on Friday.

(Kelvin Kuo/Los Angeles Times)

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“Today was a great starting point for us,” McKennie said. “But we know that’s just a start and this is something we don’t want to over-celebrate. Because we want this to be the normal for us.

“We have two more games to go in the group. Hopefully we improve.”

Added Pulisic: “There’s so much more we want to accomplish.”

And not all of that will take place on the field.

As one of three host nations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, El Tri will look to make this summer its year to finally go deeper than the Round of 16. 

Mexico opened its World Cup campaign with a dominant 2-0 win over South Africa at Mexico City Stadium on Thursday. 

Julián Quiñones quickly got things started with a goal in the ninth minute, which was followed by Raúl Jiménez’s first career World Cup goal in the 67th minute after a South Africa red card.

Because of their ideal first result, Mexico has jumped from +6500 to +5000 on the oddsboard to win the World Cup. They are now also -185 to win Group A, a major jump from the -140 number they were at before the tournament began.

Just how big was Mexico’s win over South Africa? El Tri now has a better chance of making the final than being eliminated in the group stage. 

Can they build off their opening match and make a deep run in this tournament? Let’s check out the updated odds for Mexico as of June 12.

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Team Mexico — Stage of Elimination

Last 32: +130 (bet $10 to win $23 total)
Last 16: +150 (bet $10 to win $25 total)
Quarterfinals: +400 (bet $10 to win $50 total)
Semifinals: +1200 (bet $10 to win $130 total)
Runner-up: +2800 (bet $10 to win $290 total)
Group stage: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)
Outright winner: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)

Mexico to Qualify from Group A: –10000 (bet $10 to win $10.10 total)

Mexico Group A Winner: -185 (bet $10 to win $14.76 total)

Mexico Top Goalscorer 

Raúl Jiménez: -115 (bet $10 to win $18.70 total)
Julián Quiñones: +150 (bet $10 to win $25 total)
Santiago Giménez: +1400 (bet $10 to win $150 total)
Armando González: +1400 (bet $10 to win $150 total)
Roberto Alvarado: +1800 (bet $10 to win $190 total)
Guillermo Martínez: +2500 (bet $10 to win $260 total)
Alexis Vega: +3000 (bet $10 to win $310 total)

What to know: Mexico has made a habit of being in the running, but never really being in the running. Make sense? Consider this: El Tri made it out of the group stage in seven consecutive World Cups (1994-2018), but never made it past the Round of 16 in any of those years. In 2022, Mexico failed to make it out of the group stage, and it will look to get back to its winning ways in 2026, as it is heavily favored to win Group A after its opening win against South Africa. Mexico will face South Korea and the Czech Republic in its final two group games. 

Prior to the tournament, Jiménez was the clear favorite to lead Mexico in goals this summer at +220. Now, after his 67th minute header that found the back of the net vs. South Africa, he is -115. Quiñones, who many believe can be one of the breakout players of the tournament, has surged from +750 to 150 after his goal on Thursday.