SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes selected Indiana University defender Daniel Munie (MEW-nee) in the first round (No. 10 overall) of the 2023 MLS SuperDraft on Wednesday. The Quakes also drafted Penn State forward Liam Butts in the second round (No. 33 overall) and University of Maryland forward Hunter George in the third round (No. 62 overall).
San Jose secured the 10th overall selection and $250k in General Allocation Money (GAM) from the New England Revolution in exchange for the fourth-overall pick.
“We are excited about the opportunity to draft Daniel with the 10th overall selection,” said Earthquakes General Manager Chris Leitch. “We considered him to be one of the best players in the draft. He’s shown excellent leadership traits and anchored a defense that helped Indiana reach two national championship finals.
“We also believe we found quality players in the second and third rounds and we’re looking forward to watching this group compete in preseason.”
Munie, 22, rose from a sparsely recruited high school player, with just two Division I offers, to becoming the second player ever to earn back-to-back Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year awards (2021-22). He also earned United Soccer Coaches Third-Team All-America honors in each of the past two seasons and led Indiana to the national championship game in 2020 and 2022. He finished his collegiate career with 84 appearances, 75 starts, nine goals and five assists, while helping secure 41 shutouts and never receiving a single booking.
Munie, a native of Maryland Heights, Mo., played his youth soccer for St. Louis Scott Gallagher SC and later the Saint Louis FC Academy.
Butts, 21, competed for Penn State from 2019-22, tallying 22 goals and six assists in 63 appearances. Following a strong freshman season, in which he scored nine goals and earned First-Team All-Big Ten honors, Butts was named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Preseason Watch List heading into the 2020 season. He scored six goals across the 2020 and 2021 seasons, before contributing seven goals and three assists in 13 appearances as a senior in 2022 to earn Second-Team All-Big Ten accolades.
As a youth player, Butts led GSA 01 Phoenix to back-to-back state championships (2013-14) before joining the Atlanta United FC Academy.
George, 21, played two seasons at the University of Maryland, where he tallied five goals and five assists in 35 appearances. He had a strong senior season and contributed four goals and four assists in 20 games (18 starts). Prior to Maryland, George played two seasons at San Diego State. As a freshman in 2019, he scored five goals in 16 appearances to earn All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention honors.
George is a native of Lincoln, Calif. and played for Sacramento Republic FC. He led the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Northwest Conference with 24 goals in 2018, earning him selection on the league's Best XI. He also earned three call-ups to the U.S. U18 National Team and was ranked as the top player in the Northern California/Hawaii region by TopDrawerSoccer.
Daniel Munie
(MEW-nee)
Position: Defender
Height: 6-0
Weight: 180 lbs.
Born: Feb. 10, 2000
Hometown: Maryland Heights, Mo.
Preferred Foot: Right
College: Indiana University (2019-22)
Roster Designation: Unsigned, Domestic
Liam Butts
Position: Forward
Height: 6-1
Weight: 165 lbs.
Born: Feb. 20, 2001
Hometown: Lawrenceville, Ga.
Preferred Foot: Right
College: Penn State University
Roster Designation: Unsigned, Domestic
Hunter George
Position: Forward
Height: 5-8
Weight: 145 lbs.
Born: April 16, 2001
Hometown: Lincoln, Calif.
Preferred Foot: Right
College: University of Maryland (2021-22), San Diego State (2019-20)
Roster Designation: Unsigned, Domestic
Transaction: San Jose Earthquakes (MLS) – Earthquakes select Indiana University defender Daniel Munie (No. 10 overall) in the first round of the 2023 MLS SuperDraft. Earthquakes also select Penn State forward Liam Butts (No. 33) in the second round and Hunter George (No. 62) in the third round.
