sjearthquakes.com:Would you say the Earthquakes Academy prepared you for college soccer?
Josh Morton: “Of course. I went to the Quakes as a midfielder from my club team. I had played midfield my entire life. They tried me at center back and I played that my junior and senior year of high school with them. They really drilled the technique of center back into me. They really prepared me in a very short amount of time to come to Cal. Cal is a prestigious school for soccer and they did very well to prepare me in the short amount of time that they had to transition me to defense.”
SJEQ: Talk about your adjustment from your high school soccer experiences to your college soccer experience.
JM: “In high school, I drove to San Jose almost every day about an hour and a half for practice, so school would end, I’d drive an hour and a half to practice, practice, come back, try to do as much studying as I could, go to sleep, and do it all again the next day. I couldn’t really form a schedule in high school, so being able to pick my classes and be able to manage my time a lot better and to have the opportunity to take care of myself off the field. I can set up video sessions with my coaches, eat proper meals before and after practice, and really take care of myself.”
SJEQ:Explain the difference between training with the Earthquakes Academy and training with Cal.
JM: “For the Earthquakes, we’d practice three times a week. The guys on the team are from all over the Bay Area so its hard to get everyone in one spot four or five times a week. Everyone on the Cal team lives in Berkeley. We’re all within a mile of each other. It’s really easy to make a 30 minute practice before a game or a swimming session after a game.”
SJEQ:When you’re playing in an academy, you’re traveling every week all across the country. How nice is it to just walk from your dorm on campus to training and home matches?
JM: “Its nice, because I drove so much in high school. It was just a total energy zapper. The fact that I don’t have to travel every day is really nice. It gives me a lot more time. Most of that time is spent taking care of my school work, because that’s a nonstop job I have here.”
SJEQ:How have you adjusted to the collegiate game?
JM: “Both center backs on the team went to the draft when I came in, so the position was wide open. Having little experience and starting as a freshman was really a roller coaster. I didn’t know what to expect. I feel like this past year, even though we didn’t make the playoffs and didn’t have the best year in the world, I feel like I’ve adjusted a lot better. We had a really young team this year though, and its kind of nice to be a leader on the team to the freshmen. Most of our team consists of sophomores and freshmen, so I feel like it's my job on the team to lead the younger players a bit more. It's forcing me to grow up a little bit and lead the team.”
SJEQ:Take us through your first collegiate goal against Davidson.
JM: “It was a really exciting time, trying to get a goal. It was a corner kick that I went up for. Davidson half cleared it, it went out for a throw-in, and I just decided to stay up. Jose [Carrera-Garcia] and Paul [Salcedo] did their thing and Paul got down the line and crossed it, I happened to be in the right spot at the right time. I hit it off the crossbar and in.”
SJEQ:Talk about your recent PDL experience with Burlingame Dragons FC?
JM: “I found it was a really cool experience, having a PDL team that was linked to the Earthquakes that brought out tremendous crowds at home games. Dana Taylor was a great coach and he brought in a lot of good players. I had a lot of fun with the new friends that I made, and overall, I thought it was a really good experience.
SJEQ:Do you keep in touch with your academy teammates?
JM: “Absolutely, especially because I’m in the Bay Area, it’s really easy to keep in touch with ex-Quakes guys. I played Amir [Bashti] twice this year, so I’ve been chatting with him a little bit. I talk to Max [Mirner] and Remi [Prieur] a lot because they’re just over at St. Mary’s. All the guys that were in my graduating class, we had a really special brotherhood that can’t be broken. I know whenever we see each other next it’ll be really exciting.”
SJEQ:What advice would you give to current academy players?
JM: “Don’t take any practice or games for granted. You never know who is watching. There are scouts at every game, don’t take your foot off the pedal. That can be challenging at times with traveling and hard schedules in high school, but trust me, it will be worth it."
SJEQ: What is the best advice you’ve gotten from the Earthquakes’ Academy?
JM: “When Marquise White said ‘winning is fun, winning is important, but that’s not the reason why we’re playing and that’s not the reason why you’re here in this academy. The reason is to make you a better player. Everyone has a part of their game that they can work on. Even professionals aren’t perfect. They always have things to work on. Know that you’re not going to be perfect on every given day, but you can work to make yourself just as close to that as you can.’”
