Furman Soccer Alumnus Wyke Joins Nashville SC

The 2017 Southern Conference Player of the Year teams with former Furman Soccer standout & U.S. National Team player Zimmerman at Nashville SC.

Deniz Sariaslan

January 20, 2023

Nashville SC has announced the signing of former Furman Soccer star Laurence Wyke on a one-year deal with club options for 2023 and 2024. Wyke made 66 appearances for the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the USL Championship over the last two seasons before joining the MLS side. His performance at the Rowdies was nothing short of remarkable as he led the team in tackles during the 2021 season. Having scored six goals over these two years, Wyke’s eight assists were the cherry on top.

Wyke put his stamp on Furman history during two years on the pitch as a Paladin. Following his enchanting 2017 campaign that was crowned with SoCon Player of the Year honors, he scored seven goals as a senior and led the Dins to a 13-7-2 record, SoCon Tournament title and NCAA Tournament second-round appearance in 2018. The Paladin midfielder was a two-time All-SoCon Conference Selection and garnered United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-American honors.

The England native’s Furman career was full of unforgettable moments, including five match-winning goals. In his senior season, Wyke scored an overtime goal in the SoCon semifinals to advance Furman to the championship. After leading the Paladins to a 3-0 win over UNCG in the SoCon championship match, he converted from the penalty spot to help Furman eliminate UNCW in a penalty shootout in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

Wyke’s top-notch performance at Furman earned him MLS interest. The midfielder signed a two-year deal with Atlanta United 2 post-Furman. It took him only one year to secure a spot on the Atlanta United FC roster, and he appeared in seven MLS matches in 2020.

With Wyke’s move to Nashville SC, the Dins now have three alumni on MLS rosters:

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About the Contributor

Deniz Sariaslan, Managing Editor

A senior from Turkey, Deniz is a double major in Economics and Communication Studies. His interest in media goes a long way back to 2019, since when he has been working as an NBA-credentialed editor at Turkey’s largest social media network on basketball. Having served as The Paladin’s sports editor for the past two years, he has decided to step out of his comfort zone and embrace a new challenge. So here he is now, executing the Managing Editor role.