Rise & Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story

Subject of film:
I've always been... interested in-in-in the adventure side of things - in taking chances, taking risks - because the bigger risk you take, the bigger incentive there is at the end. And for me, there was no bigger incentive than to play professional soccer in Europe, because I knew that I'd seen it on TV - I'd watched Man United; I'd watched Liverpool; I'd been to Europe; I'd seen games - and I just thought, "Well, if I can get to the pinnacle of my profession, it's gotta be in Europe, it's gotta be there, and I gotta take that chance."

Jay's Friend:
Like, I just saw the potential - like, I knew he needed work, but the raw potential was, like - man! - he can play.

Bolton FC:
You know, they talk about the odds of becoming... from a college soccer player to becoming a pro, and becoming from a regular soccer player to becoming a pro-athlete, and then you think about the few that are privileged to... to be the twenty-three best in... in the... in your nation and, uh, representing your country as a whole in the... in the World Cup, and it really... it really kind of puts things into perspective for you.

Subject of film:
At the moment you're in the top thirty players in the whole of the country of - how many? - 300... 400 million people. You know, it's like when you think about what that means, and what that means to put on that shirt and... and to play against all the rest of the best of the other countries, you know, it really defines what this sport's all about.

Subject of film:
Some people might say that I was lucky, but I don't believe in luck. I believe in hard work and perseverance to achieve your goals.

Subject of film:
Remember that the poorest person isn't the person that doesn't have a dollar. It's the person who has given up, the person without hope, the person without a dream.

USMNT Coach:
And one of the things that, uh, I've always, uh, enjoyed during the time that I've had a chance to work with Jay is, um, he's fearless. Whether he's playing against a big name forward or not, there's part of him that... that, as he walks out the locker room onto the field, he gives you, uh... a little wink, and he gives you the confidence that "I'm ready for it; I'm gonna give you everything I have." And that fearless mentality, uh... that... that really pays off because it spreads itself around the team. It gives teammates confidence that over the course of ninety or a hundred twenty minutes, um, that's a player that you can just count on. And I think that, as we had a chance to get to know him better, that's really been... been the most important thing that he's brought to our team.