BALTIMORE – The New England Revolution made two selections this afternoon at the 2016 MLS SuperDraft, selecting defender Jordan McCrary from the University of North Carolina in the first round (10th overall) and forward Michael Gamble from Wake Forest in the second round (30th overall). Both players are scheduled to join the Revolution next week in Foxborough for the start of preseason training ahead of the start of the 2016 MLS campaign.
“Every draft is different, but we went into this year’s with a plan in place and felt that we were able to execute that,” Revolution general manager Michael Burns said. “In the first round we had a specific position identified and feel that we were able to fill that with Jordan. In the second round, we went with who we thought was the best player still on the board and in our mind that was Michael.”
McCrary was a four-year starter at North Carolina, starting all 86 games in which he appeared for the Tar Heels, scoring one goal and adding nine assists. He helped North Carolina win the NCAA College Cup as a freshman in 2011 when he was named to the All-ACC Freshman Team and a College Soccer News Freshman All-American. After redshirting during the 2014 season because of a knee injury, McCrary returned for his senior season in 2015, tallying a career-high five assists and earning NSCAA Third Team All-South Region honors. A native of Marietta, Georgia, McCrary has spent time in the U.S. National Team program, playing for the U-15, U-17, U-18 and U-20 squads.
Gamble scored 24 goals and added 20 assists in his four years at Wake Forest, helping lead the Demon Deacons to the NCAA Tournament each season. He tallied a career-best eight goals as a freshman in 2012, playing alongside current Revolution forward Sean Okoli, to be named to the ACC All-Freshman Team. As a junior in 2014, Gamble earned First Team All-ACC honors after scoring six times and adding a career-best 10 assists. He scored six more goals in 14 games as a senior in 2015, helping Wake Forest earn the top seed in the NCAA Tournament, where they reached the quarterfinals. Originally born in England, Gamble moved to the United States as a child and played high school soccer in Maryland, where he was named the state’s player of the year by various outlets.
The SuperDraft will conclude on Tuesday, Jan. 19 with the third and fourth rounds, with the Revs holding their natural third-round pick (No. 51 overall). Those rounds will be conducted via conference call. New England traded its natural fourth-round selection to Vancouver Whitecaps FC in February 2014 in exchange for midfielder Daigo Kobayashi.
The Revolution will open preseason training ahead of the 2016 MLS season in Foxborough on Friday, Jan. 22. The team will travel to Casa Grande, Arizona for 10 days of training on Tuesday, Jan. 26 and then train for a week in Foxborough from Feb. 8-13 before heading to Tucson, Arizona on Feb. 14 for the Desert Diamond Cup.
