Becoming a professional soccer player was one of the furthest things from Justin Meram’s mind four years ago, when he was just a teenager looking for a pickup game more than 2,000 miles from his home.
But this weekend the former Michigan Wolverines star will be one of the most promising players at the MLS Combine, and he’s a potential first round pick in the MLS SuperDraft on Jan. 13.
Things weren’t so rosy back in 2007, when Meram found himself trying to find the right fit after a strong high school career in Shelby Township, Mich., a town 30 miles north of Detroit. With no NCAA Division 1 programs showing interest in him despite an All-State caliber prep career, he picked up with the rest of his family and moved from his native Michigan to Arizona.
Meram had little idea what to do next. He was playing pickup soccer at a local park in Scottsdale one day, when some alumni of nearby Yavapai College took notice of the strong, burly striker, and got in touch with head coach Mike Pantalione with a message: give this kid a look.
Despite already having a full roster, Pantalione obliged, and Meram earned a spot on to the team. In his two years at Yavapai – a formidable soccer program at the Junior College level – Meram returned the favor of his new coach, scoring 51 goals and dishing out 30 assists while winning two national championships at Yavapai.
That’s when the big schools came calling. Meram narrowed his choices down to Michigan and Ohio State, electing to give the young Wolverines program a boost. He was serviceable as a junior, scoring seven goals and chipping in six assists, but he knew he still had plenty of work ahead.
“My junior year was decent, but I still needed a lot of work to become a professional,” he said. “I just said if I’m here, I might as well train and train, get better, get faster, give up things to pursue my dream.”
He did just that between his junior and senior years, as others on campus started to take notice too. The Michigan football team tracked him down for a potential spot as a placekicker, something he’d done in high school and something he considered strong enough to meet with football coach Rich Rodriguez and even suited up for the Wolverines’ first game against Connecticut last fall.
But the hectic schedule and demands of playing two sports quickly meant he had to choose, and his focus turned to soccer. That, of course, was good news for the Wolverines soccer team, who rode Meram’s 17 goals to a Big Ten tournament championship and a first-ever College Cup appearance.
Since a loss to Akron in December in the College Cup, he’s kept busy working with one eye on impressing in the Combine.
“I haven’t had much time off, which is good. I just plan right now to stay in shape and be ready,” he said. “I gave myself about three or four days after the end of the season, then got right back into it.”
For someone very new to the idea of becoming a professional, he admitted there were some nerves ahead of the Combine – but viewed that as a positive.
“I feel like being nervous is also a sign that you’re mentally going to be ready,” he said.
