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.
 
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 centerback 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.
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.
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. 


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


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