The 2020 MLS Cup Final is known by many as Aidan Morris’ coming out party. In the regular season, a rookie Morris started only two games and played just 360 minutes. In the Columbus Crew’s run to the final, Morris did not feature. Yet when the starting lineup was announced, then-head coach Caleb Porter turned to the Homegrown product in central midfield. 

This was not a tactical adjustment or a move to surprise the Seattle Sounders. In the days leading up to the championship match, starting midfielder Darlington Nagbe and winger Pedro Santos tested positive for COVID-19 and could not play. Porter turned to Morris for the first time in the postseason to start alongside Artur.

“I think I found out the day before the game for that one,” Morris reflected this week.

Morris played the best game of his young career to that point in that final. The 19 year old was all over the field and bossed Seattle’s veteran midfield of João Paulo and Cristian Roldan. He registered an assist on Lucas Zelarayan’s first goal and got to lift his first MLS Cup following a 3-0 win at Historic Crew Stadium.

On Saturday, Morris will hope to lift his second league trophy when the Black & Gold host LAFC in this year’s MLS Cup at Lower.com Field. After two seasons of missing the playoffs, Columbus is back in the championship game, and Morris is a main reason why.

“This one’s exciting for sure,” Morris said. “Obviously, it’s not COVID year, so a bit more normalcy with everything. But I think the vibe around everyone is so excited just to be here. Trying to soak it all in and realize what we have to do.”

Following the successful first playoff start in the final, Morris tore his ACL early in the 2021 season in a CONCACAF Champions League match and missed the rest of the year. He returned in 2022, playing in 27 games as a rotational starter with Artur next to Nagbe.

This offseason, the Crew traded Artur to the Houston Dynamo, believing Morris was ready to take on the full-time starting role in central midfield. Starting all 30 games he played, Morris and Nagbe formed one of the best midfields in MLS, as the Black & Gold finished in third place in the Supporters’ Shield standings. This midfield duo helped guide Columbus through a grueling postseason to host the MLS Cup Final for the third time since 2015.

This is a different Morris than the player who took the field on Dec. 12, 2020.

Shortly after Wilfried Nancy took over as the Crew’s head coach this offseason, he said that Morris, while a good young player, needed to run less. Given Morris was known for his engine, this came off as an interesting directive. Yet it has worked and turned Morris into a better player.

“I think the biggest area that I’ve seen is the balance,” Black & Gold president and general manager Tim Bezbatchenko told Massive Report. “I think Aidan naturally is aggressive and on the front foot. He’s a hunter; he can hunt down the ball, and he also has the ability to go forward and score goals. But I think this year under Wilfried and the coaches and playing next to Darlington, the game awareness to understand when to go, when to hold, when to push, maybe when to have some patience, it is where we’ve seen the most progress. And so I’d probably define that word as maturity.”

Morris will once again be key in an MLS Cup Final on Saturday. LAFC has a talented midfield featuring veterans Kellyn Acosta, Ilie Sanchez and Timothy Tillman. While the visitors won’t control the ball like they once did under Michael Bradley, Steve Cherundelo’s midfield trio will look to spring counterattacks, and Morris will be an important piece in stopping those moments.

But the midfielder seems to play his best in the biggest moments.

“For his young age, he’s a real competitor,” Nancy said of Morris. “And the big difference for me is he wants to get better. It’s easy to say, but it’s not easy to do it every day. And Aidan is one of the best (people) to be able to all the time try to be a better me all the time.”

Additionally, Morris has significantly more experience than when he was a rookie, having played not just for the Crew but also earning four caps for the United States Men’s National Team, and has become a young leader in the Black & Gold’s locker room.

While Morris was bright-eyed as he stepped into his first professional championship game three years ago, he is now someone Columbus’ young players, of which there are several, will go to for advice ahead of Saturday’s match.

“Regardless if they’ve played in an MLS Cup Final or just finals in general, I think they all know what to do,” Morris said this week. “I mean, you take Diego (Rossi) for example. He’s played in finals at higher levels than MLS, as well. So there’s guys like that with experience and they all know what to do.”

And what would he tell himself if he could return to 2020 before that MLS Cup Final?

“Probably nothing because we won it,” Morris said with a laugh. “Just do the same. Relax. Stay in the present. Stay calm. Soak it all in. Embrace it all. Just enjoy the moment. Go have fun.”