Metro East Sun

Justin Bilyeu has taken his game from Edwardsville to the Big Apple.

Bilyeu, formerly a star defender for Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, currently plays for the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer (MLS).

After his stellar career at SIUE – which included being a three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference pick and making the NSCAA All-West Region honorable-mention list – Bilyeu was selected by the Red Bulls as the 18th pick of the first round in the MLS Superdraft on Jan. 14. Bilyeu is the second Cougars drafted in the first round by an MLS team, joining Matt Polster, who was taken seventh overall in 2015, according to siuecougars.com.

“Just pure excitement and realization of a dream come true, and definitely being around my family when I saw the pick happen was incredible,” Bilyeu told the Metro East Sun about being drafted.

Bilyeu joined the team near the end of January and immediately realized during training sessions that while he knew players at the MLS level were good, he didn't realize how good until he started working with them.

“To be honest, the first couple of weeks were just a whirlwind, trying to get used to the style of play and speed of play and how good these guys were,” Bilyeu said.

However, as the year has progressed, he said he's gotten used to it, become a better player and come to realize he can play at that level.

“(I'm) just listening to advice from the different veteran players or the coaches and taking it all in, and just really going out there and taking it one training session at a time and getting better every day,” Bilyeu said.

There was also some culture shock in moving from Edwardsville to the biggest city in the country, with its greater traffic, pace and cost of living.

“It's a completely different lifestyle, and it's definitely tough to get used to, but it's all right right now,” Bilyeu said.

Bilyeu's first appearance in an MLS game came on April 29 in a home game against FC Dallas. Bilyeu came on late in the game and played for 10 minutes as a substitute. Bilyeu was warming up on the sideline when the kit man held up his jersey, indicating that he was going into the game.

“When I saw my jersey go up, I was, like, completely shocked because I didn't expect to go in, and then just standing there and waiting for the sub to happen, it was kind of a realization that I am about to make my dream come true,” Bilyeu said. “Then once I stepped onto the field, all that went away, and I was completely focused on what I had to do to finish out the game and help the team.”

Bilyeu then got his first MLS start on June 22 at Real Salt Lake, and subbed in for 17 minutes on July 31 at Chicago.

Bilyeu said it was a difficult adjustment period going from being a regular starter at SIUE to playing behind other players in MLS, but he also knew a lot of playing time wasn't in the cards given how much talent and experience the Red Bulls have. Bilyeu still was able to appreciate where he is at.

“It's just incredible to be a part of, to step back and, you know, see everything unfold, for sure,” Bilyeu said.