AS THE UNITED STATES U-20 national team prepares to kick off its World Cup qualifying campaign on Friday night in Mexico, Nolan Norris understands there is pressure on his team. For one, the U.S. U-20 team has been successful in recent cycles with four straight World Cup quarterfinals and three straight CONCACAF titles.

This year’s team is out of the spotlight compared to recent cycles given the full team’s disappointing showing in the Copa America followed by the search for a new head coach. Then there is the men’s team’s participation in the Olympics at the same time as the U-20 qualifiers.

Norris, 19, has been the U.S. U-20 team’s captain since the team’s first camp of the cycle back in March and has been labeled as the team’s “heart and soul” in a recent video put out by U.S. Soccer. Born and raised in Ft. Worth and the oldest of six kids, Norris understands what is at stake. 

“I think it's a responsibility,” Norris told ASN from Mexico. “All of us have watched the U-20 teams before us. I watched the last U-20 team win Concacaf, had a couple friends of the team. I wanted to be here. It's a responsibility. Maybe pressure, but I think pressure is a privilege. Playing for the United States is something special. We just have to grasp the opportunity.”

“We’re confident,” he added. “We've had good preparation. We've had two good camps against top opponents. I think the players have all come together. We have a good camaraderie. I think no game is less important than the other. So, we're ready. We're excited. And, honestly, just looking forward to getting the games going.”

Unlike previous cycles, this U-20 team has not spent much time together prior to qualifying. In the past, a U-20 cycle would typically begin in the fall following a U-20 World Cup. This team, however, did not begin to play together until this past March under head coach Michael Nsien and only had two camps prior to qualifying.

The optimistic take is that the team played well in both camps. In March, the U.S. defeated England 3-2 but lost to Morocco 1-0 in Morocco. Then in June, the team defeated Argentina 1-0 in Buenos Aires and then Uruguay 1-0 in Montevideo.

Norris believes that both camps were successful.

“The Morocco camp was good,” Norris said of the U-20 cycle. “It was, in a sense, two separate teams coming together. You had about half the group from the last U-17 team. Then you had about half of us who have been with the old U-19 cycle with Marco Mitrovic. It was really about guys coming together, developing a playing style and just getting to know each other.”

“That led us into Argentina,” he continued. “And I think by that time we had a settled team, we were really happy with the staff and how everything is going. We had two top opponents - we showed energy, intensity and a will to find a way to win - whether it's pretty or not. That gave us a lot of confidence too, winning those games.”

But World Cup qualifying will be a different story. The team did not get many key players released given CONCACAF’s decision to play it outside any international window and during a time when many of the region’s leagues are in season and European teams are in preseason.

Despite those obstacles, Norris believes his team has the ability to succeed in Mexico. The team is drawn into Group A with Jamaica, Cuba, and Costa Rica. Should they advance, as expected, they will play in a quarterfinal game that will alone determine qualification to the 2025 U-20 World Cup in Chile.  

Norris is a product of the FC Dallas system and has been with the organization since he was 12. He signed a homegrown deal in November 2022 and made his first team debut in 2023 where he made two starts. In the 2024 season, he has made four appearances, including two starts.

Like the Philadelphia Union, FC Dallas has been among the biggest feeding clubs into U.S. youth national teams over the past decade. Weston McKennie spent nine seasons with the Dallas academy before moving to Germany. Ricardo Pepi, Tanner Tessmann, and Reggie Cannon have all progressed from the academy into the full national team.

“I'm really grateful that I joined the club when I was 12,” Norris said of FC Dallas. “And obviously, when you join our academy, you see a lot of the famous names who go from the academy to first team, and even off to big things overseas. That is what I sought to do. Like, okay, I'm in a good spot where they're going to give me everything I need to excel and help me get into national teams, achieve a dream, to become a homegrown like the guys before me. And I'll just keep pushing on with the national team. Try breaking into the first team, and then who knows what happens in the future?”

But like many players on this team, Norris has also been among the first wave of prospects to come through the MLS Next Pro league as a key avenue for development and many of the team’s players have spent time in that league in recent months prior to this tournament.

“I think just kind of being around that environment since the beginning of the league,” Norris said of MLS Next Pro. “I think it is growing. Obviously with any new league, there's going to be stepping stones to go over. I think a lot of us are in the position where we're first team players trying to break in. I've been getting games for the first team, really involved. Others maybe not so much. I think we just need the minutes. And I think Next Pro, it's the closest thing where we can get minutes... But again, like with anything, it's going to take some time to get up to speed... Regardless of who you're playing with, you have to take it seriously. I think that's what a lot of guys have done.”

With this team, Norris is expected to lineup in the backline. As a versatile player who has played centerback, defensive midfield, and left back, Norris spent most of his time as a left back growing up. For a portion of his youth career, he was a smaller player. But after a growth spurt, he was able to play more centrally – where he plays a lot of Dallas. But with this U-20 team, he expects to feature at left back and possible central defense as well.

But more than where he lines up on the field, Norris is expected to wear the armband during qualifying. Norris has been the captain throughout the cycle and he is ready to lead the team, which has high expectations, into a pressure-filled tournament.

He considers it an honor and a unique opportunity.

“I'm just super grateful and super honored,” Norris said of captaining the U-20 team. “This is something very special for me and my family. Every time that I come into the camp to play a game with the armband on, it's something that I really appreciate. It's just being a good leader for the team – and doing it in different ways. Each player obviously is a different person and responds differently. Off the field, it's just creating a sense of focus, obviously enjoying each other's company, but keep each other locked in for why we're here. On the field, I have a little bit of experience for the national teams over the years and, it’s just stepping up, being a good player for the team and holding everybody accountable to keep a level high.”

“But there are a lot of leaders in the team. There's more than just me.”