Q&A with Jose Ortiz
January 10, 2020 | Men's Soccer, Features
Senior Jose Ortiz has had quite a career with UC Irvine men's soccer. The three-time all-conference selection helped the Anteaters to the 2018 Big West regular-season title and an NCAA Tournament bid. In four seasons, he played in 75 career matches, finishing with 17 goals, 41 points and four game-winners. In this segment of UC Irvine Athletics' Q&A series, Ortiz talks about his playing career, student-athlete life, and his future career aspirations.
Q: Let's start with a quick recap of your season. How did you feel about the team's performance this year?
A: Overall, I feel like we had a pretty good season although we didn't make it as far as we wanted to. I feel like we played well and deserved much more than what we got.
Q: Being named to the All-Big West team three times, what has been the biggest contributing factor to your success?
A: I feel like a big contributing factor to my success has been my hard work aside from regular team practices. After speaking to the coaching staff about wanting to have a better career at UCI, they provided me with workouts that I could do in order to achieve my goal. I took the time to do those workouts on my own time, and that was a big reason why I started seeing success on the field during my time at UCI.
Q: You had the opportunity to play with your brother Mario for two seasons. How was it to have him by your side as you started your collegiate career?
A: It was a wonderful experience being able to share the field with him at the collegiate level. Throughout our whole lives we always played together and our goal was to be able to play college soccer together. We constantly spoke about it, and for it to happen, it was a blessing. I will remember that forever.
Q: Do you have any pre-game rituals?
A: Normally before games I would play FIFA or Madden with some of my teammates, and then I would take a nap before heading over to the locker room and playing a bit of soccer tennis before getting ready for the game.
Q: What has been your most memorable experience at UCI both on and off the field?
A: The most memorable experience on the field would be winning the Big West regular season title. It was something we worked for throughout the whole season and it felt great winning it. Off of the field, the most memorable experience had to be graduating early from UCI. Coming here, my goal was always to graduate, and being able to graduate early made it feel even better to accomplish that goal.
Q: What advice would you give to future 'Eaters?
A: Some advice that I have for future 'Eaters is that they should always work hard in everything they do. Never give yourself the chance to regret something you could have done better.
Q: What are your post-graduation goals?
A: One of my post-graduation goals is to play professional soccer. This has always been a dream of mine since I was a kid, and I will do my best to try and reach that goal. If that doesn't happen, then I want to start my own business, preferably related to shoes. I have always loved shoes, and owning a sneaker store would be a dream come true.
Q: Which professional soccer player would you compare yourself to and why?
A: I would compare myself to Angel Di Maria. His body type is similar to mine and I feel like we have some attributes that are similar as well. An example of this would be that we are both left-footed and seem to be pretty agile and good with the ball at our feet.
Q: Student-athletes often have a very challenging schedule, how do you manage your time?
A: I manage my time by having a schedule that I constantly follow. It allows me to stay on track with everything I do and also allows me to make changes that are necessary.
Q: What do you like to do in your free time?
A: In my free time I like to play video games and spend time with my girlfriend. I enjoy playing video games like FIFA, GTA 5, and Call of Duty.
Q: Let's start with a quick recap of your season. How did you feel about the team's performance this year?
A: Overall, I feel like we had a pretty good season although we didn't make it as far as we wanted to. I feel like we played well and deserved much more than what we got.
Q: Being named to the All-Big West team three times, what has been the biggest contributing factor to your success?
A: I feel like a big contributing factor to my success has been my hard work aside from regular team practices. After speaking to the coaching staff about wanting to have a better career at UCI, they provided me with workouts that I could do in order to achieve my goal. I took the time to do those workouts on my own time, and that was a big reason why I started seeing success on the field during my time at UCI.
Q: You had the opportunity to play with your brother Mario for two seasons. How was it to have him by your side as you started your collegiate career?
A: It was a wonderful experience being able to share the field with him at the collegiate level. Throughout our whole lives we always played together and our goal was to be able to play college soccer together. We constantly spoke about it, and for it to happen, it was a blessing. I will remember that forever.
Q: Do you have any pre-game rituals?
A: Normally before games I would play FIFA or Madden with some of my teammates, and then I would take a nap before heading over to the locker room and playing a bit of soccer tennis before getting ready for the game.
Q: What has been your most memorable experience at UCI both on and off the field?
A: The most memorable experience on the field would be winning the Big West regular season title. It was something we worked for throughout the whole season and it felt great winning it. Off of the field, the most memorable experience had to be graduating early from UCI. Coming here, my goal was always to graduate, and being able to graduate early made it feel even better to accomplish that goal.
Q: What advice would you give to future 'Eaters?
A: Some advice that I have for future 'Eaters is that they should always work hard in everything they do. Never give yourself the chance to regret something you could have done better.
Q: What are your post-graduation goals?
A: One of my post-graduation goals is to play professional soccer. This has always been a dream of mine since I was a kid, and I will do my best to try and reach that goal. If that doesn't happen, then I want to start my own business, preferably related to shoes. I have always loved shoes, and owning a sneaker store would be a dream come true.
Q: Which professional soccer player would you compare yourself to and why?
A: I would compare myself to Angel Di Maria. His body type is similar to mine and I feel like we have some attributes that are similar as well. An example of this would be that we are both left-footed and seem to be pretty agile and good with the ball at our feet.
Q: Student-athletes often have a very challenging schedule, how do you manage your time?
A: I manage my time by having a schedule that I constantly follow. It allows me to stay on track with everything I do and also allows me to make changes that are necessary.
Q: What do you like to do in your free time?
A: In my free time I like to play video games and spend time with my girlfriend. I enjoy playing video games like FIFA, GTA 5, and Call of Duty.
Players Mentioned
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