The center back decided he needed to chase his dream over school — a move that has paid off with starter’s minutes for Real Salt Lake.
Justen Glad can’t help but wonder what could have been.
A high school junior at the Real Salt Lake academy in Casa Grande, Arizona, the central defender had committed to play at Stanford. If he had decided to go in that direction, Glad would have been a part of a team that eventually included U.S. internationals Jordan Morris and Brandon Vincent — a squad that also won the 2015 national championship.
But RSL offered him a homegrown player contract his junior year, which made all the difference.
“After my junior year, I probably would have waited it out, gone to college for a semester and then signed,” Glad told Goal USA. “Because it was a full year and a half away, that’s a lot of time to be developing as a player. Me and my family talked to a bunch of people — athletes, non-athletes, teachers, trying to get different perspectives on it. What we realized was the sooner, the better. I know there’s only a certain amount of time you’re going to be in the league, so might as well make the most of it.”
He added: “It was tough watching them win the national championship, for sure. But you can’t really have regrets this point — you have to think, ‘I made my decision, that’s what I’ll stick with, and I’m happy with it.’ This season, it’s really paying off.”
It’s easy to understand dreaming of college success. But it’s just as easy to see why the 19-year-old, who has started 11 of Real Salt Lake’s 16 league games this year, feels like he made the right call.
Homegrown players in MLS can be a bit of a misnomer. Many of the system’s biggest names, like Morris, Gyasi Zardes and DeAndre Yedlin, spent formative years in college. In passing on school, Glad spent more time being shaped by a professional system.
The result? The mentality of an “experienced player,” according to RSL coach Jeff Cassar.
“He’s had four incredible years down at our academy where he’s played a lot of games, won championships, was introduced to the first team, either through reserve games or training with us in the summertime,” Cassar said. “And then he’s made the transition up to the first team. He’s been coached by fantastic coaches, able to watch and be mentored by some fantastic center backs on our team, former players and current players, and he’s got that professional attitude.
“All of those things almost molded the kind center back you want to have with your club for a very long time.”
That “kind of center back” may not even look like stereotypical one at first glance. Glad is listed at an even 6 feet tall and just 145 pounds. For comparison’s sake, fellow RSL center back Jamison Olave is 6-foot-3, 215 pounds. But Glad makes up for it with a tactical sense that has helped him slowly carve out a place for himself in the league.
“If you’re looking at me, you’re not going to say, ‘Wow, he’s a physical presence,’” Glad said. “I don’t think that thought has crossed anyone’s mind. But I think what makes me a contender to be a good player in this league is that I can read the game well. I can anticipate where the ball is going to go and what people are going to do to put myself in the right positions to try and stop it.”
The stats back that up. Glad is averaging three interceptions per game this season, tied with Aaron Maund for tops on the team. He’s also made nine blocks, which is the most for RSL in 2016.
But anticipation is only part of the game. There’s communication, technical skills and, of course, physicality. The latter is something Glad realized early on, as he was playing with the reserves and later Real Monarchs of the USL, he was going to have to work on.
“I used to be able to outrun people and body people, but with these grown men I’m getting bodied,” Glad said. “People are faster than me, stronger than me, so there’s definitely been an adjustment period.”
It was made easier by a good support system in his teammates. He praised the Real Salt Lake locker room for welcoming him to the fold the moment he arrived, saying they all wanted him to succeed — in particular, veteran Nat Borchers.
“I know there’s an uncanny resemblance between how we look, but his game — I think he’s really smart,” Glad said. “He can anticipate the game as well and he was always teaching me stuff my first year. And he was always kind of mentoring me and helping me out. That’s who I tried to play like just cause he’s so smart on the ball — doesn’t make many mistakes.”
But after Borchers was traded to the Portland Timbers in December 2014, Glad had to look elsewhere for personal and professional examples. He’s since built a relationship with Maund that has produced on-the-field results. In the nine league games the pair have started together this season, RSL has posted a 7-1-1 record with 12 goals conceded. Using other combinations, RSL has just a 1-4-2 mark with 14 goals conceded.
Cassar believes there’s more to it than that, but has noticed the pair seem to work well together.
“The performances in front of them have been very good, which gives our team a better chance to get the result we want,” he said. “With that being said, it does seem Aaron and Justen are on the same page. Their communication is very good with one another and their communication with the players in front of them and their outside backs have been very good.”
At 19, it’s easy to see a bright future for Glad. He’s part of the U.S. youth setup and he hopes to be a part of the Under-20 World Cup team in 2017. An opportunity to play in Europe is a dream, though he made clear he’s content at RSL.
In the meantime, Cassar believes Glad needs to just keep doing what he’s doing — working hard, preparing every day and then translating that to the weekends.
“With Justen, you never have to worry about him lacking, because he wants to get better and wants to learn,” Cassar said. “He’s a very intelligent young man. It’s not time to rest — it’s time to keep your foot on the gas and moving forward.”
Glad said as much, saying he hopes to “take advantage of the situation I’m in.”
“A lot of these guys who are part of the league now are little older — they’ve watched the league grow and can see the league has gone on to big things,” he added.
“Coming up through the academy and having an opportunity at a young age to be part of a professional environment is something they didn’t have. Knowing that I’ve had these opportunities, I’m not slacking off, really dedicating my time and energy and putting them to good use.”
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