Two of the four remaining teams feature Atlanta United prospects in their starting 11s.
The college soccer playoffs have been wild this year. Of the nine teams featuring Atlanta United prospects that we featured in our Cup Preview, two remain in the Final Four. Take a moment to look at the official bracket to see how many upsets, close finishes, and highly entertaining instant classics made this year especially special for college soccer fans. For Atlanta United fans, some of the joy has been in seeing the Cinderella run for Braden Dunham, Luke Hutzell, and their Furman teammates, while NC State is in the midst of a remarkable breakout season.
As the College Soccer fandom shifts its focus to Cary, North Carolina, Atlanta United fans have the added opportunity of witnessing potential future Homegrown Players and SuperDraft picks competing for a championship.
December 12th | Furman vs Washington | 6:00 PM
This has been a remarkable season for Furman. In the final season for their legendary coach, Doug Allison, the Paladins are the closest they have ever been to lifting a College Cup trophy. Allison has had a remarkable impact on the college game, producing USMNT talents like Clint Dempsey and Walker Zimmerman, and has the chance to close out one of the most influential college coaching careers with a championship.
His freshman defensive phenom, Braden Dunham, has been an important part of this run. After having one of the most impressive 18 months I’ve seen from an academy prospect, Dunham added to his impressive college resume with a brilliant match-winning goal against Portland.
Dunham’s dominance as a defense-first left-back and left centerback, offensive ability, and incredible command of the game around him and is already drawing comparisons to fellow-Furman graduate Walker Zimmerman by college commentators. Part of that comparison comes from his dominance in the air on set pieces. Dunham finished the season with 7 goals and 2 assists. All of this earned Dunham a growing list of honors, including Southern Conference Freshman of the Year, All-Southern Conference First Team, All-Southern Conference Freshman Team, and Southern Conference Tournament Best-11.
Sophomore holding midfielder Luke Hutzell has also been absolutely brilliant in the Southern Conference Playoffs and the College Cup. Hutzell plays as a traditional 6, shielding his back line while playing a key role in Furman’s build-up. His most impressive match so far came in a 3-3 shoot-out in the rain against Western Michigan. Hutzell played like a man possessed, scoring one of the goals, adding an assist, and earning a hockey assist for a key pass on the third goal. Hutzell finished the season as one of four midfielders in the All-Southern Conference First Team and as a member of the Southern Conference Tournament Best-11.
Furman will take on a very good Washington team featuring the Big Ten Midfielder of the Year Richie Aman. Aman will be one of the top players available in this year’s SuperDraft and is being considered by Atlanta United for the #2 overall pick. This will be a fascinating duel between two of the best remaining midfielders in the country as Aman and Furman’s Diego Hernandez both have the capacity to take over a game and put their team on their back.
December 12th | Saint Louis vs NC State | 8:30 PM
North Carolina State is also in the midst of a remarkable season. Incoming head coach Mark Hubbard brought the dominant style of play he perfected at New Hampshire to the Atlantic Coast Conference and used the transfer portal to assemble one of the best groups of players to ever take the field in college soccer. Among that team was Atlanta United prospect and former Georgia State midfielder Justin McLean. McLean has had a great senior season as a versatile midfielder. He is a constant threat in the attack that draws attention away from his teammates and has an aggressive tenacity in pursuit of the ball on defense. It remains to be seen whether he will return to Atlanta to start his professional career, but if he enters the draft, an MLS team will be getting a player who has an intriguingly similar profile to Julian Gressel when he was at Providence.
The Wolfpack will take on a Saint Louis team that has already beaten the top teams in their quadrant of the bracket. After overcoming Kentucky in double overtime, Saint Louis shut out Indiana, outlasted a very good Bryant team in penalty kicks, and beat Akron in a 3-2 shootout. Do you believe in miracles? Saint Louis certainly does.
The College Cup Final will be held on Monday, December 15th at 7 PM. If any of our boys advance to the Cup, we will keep you updated with everything you need to know to support them.