This Merced star’s strong bond with his coach helped turn his life around.

Ezra Morales has been a breakout star for the Merced High football team this year.

Coming into the season, three-year starters like Dhameer Warren at quarterback and Xavier Stewart at receiver were expected to be big contributors. Morales came in under the radar after finishing last year as the second leading receiver on the Bears as a junior.

Morales has become a big-time threat in the passing game, hauling in 16 catches for 379 yards and seven touchdowns for the 5-0 Bears as they prepare to host El Capitan (0-5, 0-1 Central California Conference) at Merced High on Friday night in Merced’s homecoming game.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Morales had a stretch of three consecutive games in which he caught two touchdown passes earlier this season.

“This year has been pretty special,” Morales said. “It all goes back to love, trust and commit. We love each other, we trust each other and we’re all committed to one goal. We’re all committed to prove to everyone we aren’t who we were last year.”

Morales, by his own admission, has come a long way during his time at Merced High. He’s matured a lot as a player and more importantly grown as a person.

“I had one teacher his freshman year tell me Ezra was the worst student he ever had,” said Merced coach Rob Scheidt. “I don’t think there’s a teacher now who would describe Ezra that way... Obviously, once I heard that, my antennas were up. We had to figure out how we can help this kid.”

Morales credits the bond he formed with Scheidt over the past three years for helping turn his life around. Morales was headed down the wrong path when he arrived at Merced High as a freshman.

His home life was turned upside down when he was in middle school when his parents informed him they were getting a divorce. The news caught Morales by surprise. He never knew his parents were unhappy or arguing.

“I have always looked up to my mom and dad,” Morales said. “My dad was in the Navy. They always looked happy. I never saw them arguing. So I took it hard. For me, it was like what happened to this happy life I had?”

Morales didn’t know how to handle the change. He became angry and that anger spilled out onto the football field. He wasn’t doing well in his classes.

It eventually led to a fight during one of his freshman games, which resulted in an ejection.

“It was coach Schedit who changed my mindset,” Morales said. “If you know coach Scheidt, you know he’s humble. I go to the same church as him. Our relationship has grown since my freshman year until now.”

Morales’ relationship with Scheidt goes beyond the normal player-coach relationship. They share a spiritual bond with them both going to the same church. Scheidt was present when Morales and two of his other Merced teammates Noah Leal and Junior Garcia were baptized last year.

Morales also joined the Young Life Merced club, which Scheidt oversees. Morales also saw the relationship Scheidt had with older players in the program. It was something he craved.

“I saw players like John Becerra and Ulonzo Gilliam and I saw how coach Scheidt was with them and the relationship they had. I wanted to be like that. I wanted that and I knew to get that I had to change.”

“That’s a reflection of how we want our program to be,” Scheidt said. “Some people structure their football program kind of like a hierarchy where the seniors don’t interact much with the freshmen. We always want our seniors to set a great example for the younger players in our program. We want them to take our younger players under their wing. Guys like Jake Foss, John Becerra, Ulonzo Gilliam and David Perales have done a great job with that.”

Scheidt quickly became somebody Morales could talk to when he needed to get something off his chest. Like when his mother Debra was later diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

Scheidt also developed a strong relationship with Morales’ father Eddie and helped to set goals for Ezra at home and in school.

“I think with every guy in our program you want to see these guys improve, not just athletically, but intellectually and in general improve in being better people,” Scheidt said. “Ezra is a great example of that. He’s spent a lot of time with our coaching staff, and me with our Young Life club. We set goals for him as a player and for being a better person. It’s nice to see him be successful on the field and more importantly it’s nice to see him be way successful socially and way successful in the classroom.”

Morales has seen his GPA improve from 2.6 as a freshman to 3.0 as a sophomore and to 3.4 by the end of his junior year. He’s taking extra classes this year to make up for the classes he didn’t do well in as a freshmen.

“I hope my GPA is even higher this year,” Morales said. “I’m doing everything I can to succeed.”

His parents are also back together. The success Morales has had on the field is the byproduct of all the positive changes in the other aspects of his life.

“I’ve worked hard in the weight room and on the field,” Morales said. “Every time I’m on the field, I’m focused. I feel like I can be myself on the field and do what I love to do. Everything that I’m stressing about, all that stuff goes away.”

Morales knows when things pop up in his life, he’s better equipped to hand them now than he was three years ago. If not, he knows where to get help.

“Just having his support means a lot,” Morales said. “Having somebody you can trust, somebody that you can talk to about things going on in your life. Coach Scheidt doesn’t just care about football. He cares about his players and what is going on in their life.”

This story was originally published September 20, 2018 at 4:09 PM with the headline "This Merced star’s strong bond with his coach helped turn his life around.."