Last year, The Seattle Sounders announced that they had given the sweetest homegrown deal in their history. This week, they have topped that previous deal with a new one for homegrown player Jordan Morris. In order to get the contract, Morris is even skipping his senior year at Stanford University to start playing for the MLS team. The decision came as a surprise to fans watching the team, particularly the ones who have been following Morris, because the rumor mill had churned out that he was interested in playing internationally instead.

Morris was born on October 26, 1994. He is from Mercer Island, Washington. He stands at 5’11 and plays forward for the team. He has also played as a Stanford Cardinal from 2013-2015 and, as a youth, for Eastside FC from 2009 to 2012. He played in all 21 games with the Cardinals, making seven assists and scoring a total of 19 points. He has also played on three international teams, including the United States U20 in 22013, in which he made three appearances; the United States U23 team, where he made 11 appearances and the United States team, where he made seven appearances. He joined the Seattle Sounders FC U-23 in 2014, appearing four times and scoring one goal.  

Morris’s parents are Michael and Leslie Morris. Michael is the Chief Medical Director for the Seattle Sounders, which has to be a perk for Morris himself. He went to Mercer Island High School and has three siblings. Morris has a huge following on Twitter already, with over 14,000 fans. Sounders fans can check him out there and read the letter he wrote about leaving college to play fulltime for the Sounders. He thanked his teammates for his positive years at Stanford, saying that he will “miss this special place, these special people and the special opportunity of representing Stanford, but I will always be a Cardinal.”

Fans can also visit Morris on Facebook, where he shares more soccer photos, pictures of himself with friends and family and information about causes he cares about, like diabetes. Stanford Athletics also features Morris on their Facebook page, videos and news.

Are you surprised that Morris decided to go with the Sounders instead of an international team—or that he left his senior year of college to do so? Are you excited to have him on board? Share your opinions in the comments below.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia