Furman Paladins Men's Soccer
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Greenville, S.C. – Furman men’s soccer standout Braden Dunham has been named to the United Soccer Coaches Watchlist as one of the top defenders in the country entering the 2026 season, it was announced on Monday.
🇺🇸Congratulations @_bradendunham on being named to the @USYNT U20 World Cup Qualifying Roster!! Only college player to be named to the squad. 💪💜👀 pic.twitter.com/4oozadpnQ7
— Furman Men's Soccer (@FurmanSoccer) July 16, 2026
A rising sophomore, Dunham is currently in Mexico as a member of the United States U-19 National Team, which is competing in the CONCACAF U-20 Championship. The center back started and played all 90 minutes last week as the U.S. defeated Cuba, 5-0, to clinch a first-place finish in Group A and secure the No. 1 seed entering the quarterfinal round. The United States takes on Guatemala Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on FS2 with the winner advancing to next weekend’s semifinals.
At @SoccerAmerica, I spoke with Braden Dunham who is anchoring the U.S. team's backline at U-20 World Cup qualifying
– I spoke to him about a lot, including playing in college with Furman when the U.S. U-20 has been almost entirely pro for 10 yearshttps://t.co/2AFOKW4H0S— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) August 3, 2026
This past season, Dunham netted seven goals to help lead Furman to a 16-2-5 record, the SoCon regular season and tournament titles, and the school’s first trip to the NCAA Men’s College Cup. The Peachtree City, Ga., native and Atlanta United FC product, who scored a thrilling goal from 40 yards out to propel Furman past No 8 seed Portland in the NCAA quarterfinals, earned SoCon Freshman of the Year honors and was selected to the All-NCAA College Cup Team. Dunham also garnered United Soccer Coaches All-Freshman honors and Top Drawer Soccer Best XI Freshman accolades after helping the Paladins to a final No. 3 national ranking. He earned his first callup to the U.S. U-19 team in March for training camp in Spain.
#U19MNT head coach Gonzalo Segares selects 21 players who will represent the United States at the 2026 Concacaf U-20 Championship from July 24-August 9 in Mexico 🚨
ℹ️ https://t.co/aSyjS0Osd7 pic.twitter.com/5AT84nEODE
— U.S. Soccer YNT (@USYNT) July 16, 2026
Dunham, the only current college player on the U.S. U-19 roster, is the only non-junior or senior on the preseason watch list
Furman begins its preseason training with an exhibition match versus High Point on Saturday, August 8, at Stone Soccer Stadium. Kickoff is set for 10:00 a.m. and admission is free.
.@FurmanSoccer's Dunham Named To United States National Team For U-20 CONCACAF Championship https://t.co/BKLX6QXse1
— Furman Men's Soccer (@FurmanSoccer) July 16, 2026
2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Players to Watch – Defenders
Luke Adams Jr. Saint Louis
Harrison Bertos Sr. Washington
Nick Collins Sr. Rutgers
Kelly Cooper Sr. Army West Point
Connor Dawson Jr. Pennsylvania
Braden Dunham So. Furman
Mathew Fisher Sr. Michigan
Takahiro Fujita Sr. UCF
Noah Holmstrom Jr. SMU
Ellis Jones Sr. Wisconsin
Charlie Kitch Jr. Rutgers
William Lawson Jr. California Baptist
Nick Lockermann Sr. North Carolina
Josh Maher Jr. Indiana
Calle Mollerberg Jr. UCSB
Parker Owens Sr. Cal Poly
Matthew Reed Sr. Creighton
Brady Treinen Sr. UC Irvine
Roka Tsunehara Jr. Princeton
Martin Wurschmidt Jr. Ohio State
Congratulations to Doug Allison of @FurmanSoccer the recipient of our 2025 CSN Bob Bradner Coach of the Year Award!
Be on the lookout for a special CSN Pod dropping soon featuring Coach Allison, where we’ll discuss his award-winning season, his coaching journey, and more. pic.twitter.com/G5mDZJIIWB
— College Soccer News (@csoccernews) July 31, 2026
Credit: Jordan Caskey furmanpaladins.com
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