Bryce Jamison: Meet the Orange County wonderkid inspired by Marcus Rashford
Orange County SC are one of the biggest exporters of players from North America to Europe. Over the last ten years, Orange County SC has moved 29 players to Europe, more than any other USL Championship side. When you take just the last three years, Orange County are first in North America, together with the New England Revolution and the Chicago Fire. Notable Orange County alumni include Milan Iloski (headed to Nordsjaelland), Korede Osundina (sold to Feyenoord), and Kobi Henry (sold to Stade Reims). The next potential export could be wonderkid Bryce Jamison.
Jamison first emerged in 2022 when he made his USL Championship debut on September 25 for Orange County SC in a 1-1 draw against Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC. Three games later the winger became the youngest goalscorer in Orange County SC’s history when he scored aged 16 years, 9 months, and three days in a 2-1 defeat to El Paso Locomotive. From then on, Jamison quickly established himself in Orange County’s first team, making 12 starts in 29 appearances across all competitions in the 2023 season (two goals and two assists).
But what sort of player is Jamison? “Some of my favorite players are [Ousmane] Dembélé and [Marcus] Rashford,” Jamison said when asked by Transfermarkt about the players he models his game after. “I like to compare myself to both of them.” Indeed, Jamison looks like a hybrid of both players. More direct and physical than Dembélé, Jamison likes to take on players directly at times, almost trying to run right through them in an effort to get into the box. Those attributes are perhaps more reminiscent of Man Utd forward Rashford.
Talents Calendar 2022: How have last year's talents developed?
Bryce Jamison: ’I like to compare myself to Dembélé and Rashford’
Indeed, the talent was obvious when Transfermarkt caught a game of the young winger in April 2023. The one area of improvement, perhaps, is his productivity and decision-making. “I always like to break through lines or go one-v-one with my opponent to create dangerous moments like that,” Jamison said to Transfermarkt after the game. “I would say that I am a fast player; I like creating one-v-one situations and getting up and down the field.” All that was visible in the 56 minutes he was on the field against Indy Eleven that day. Jamison was relentless, working up and down the wing, creating opportunities, and taking on players one-v-one creating the penalty that led to the only goal in the 1-0 win.
"Bryce’s strength is definitely that he is very easy to coach, and he picks up things quickly,” Orange County SC head coach Morten Karlsen said. “His ability to learn is his biggest strength, and as a player the fact that he keeps going and never quits and always does what the coaches ask of him is his strength. As far as weaknesses, he needs to get more goals and assists in his game; he is able to get himself in position for those opportunities but still needs to work on his finishing product."
Another aspect Karlsen pointed out was that Jamison still needs to work on his consistency. “At times, he is taking big steps, and other times it is a little bit steadier,” Karlsen said. “But his development is good, and that is part of the reason why he was at the World Cup,” Karlsen added. Indeed, at the U17 World Cup in Indonesia, Jamison played significant minutes in the group stage but featured just four minutes in the round of 16 defeat to eventual winners Germany (2-3).
Bryce Jamison: ‘U17 World Cup was a huge blessing’
Despite the disappointment of the early exit, Jamison cherished the opportunity to represent the United States at the World Cup. “It was a huge blessing to represent the United States at the U17 World Cup,” Jamison said to Transfermarkt this week. “It showed me the difference between the professional stage and the international stage.” Playing in Indonesia against some of the greatest talents on the planet also highlighted where Jamison had improved this season but also the areas he needs to work on to improve his game further. “I have improved the most with my game knowledge and understanding of the game at a pro level,” Jamison said. “I can Improve on slowing the game down and composure for myself.”
With those improvements, Jamison hopes to become one of the best players in the USL Championship and eventually make the move to Europe, where Orange County have a cooperation agreement in place with Feyenoord, following the footsteps of his former teammate Osundina. But Feyenoord aren’t the only possible destination. Transfermarkt understands that several Premier League and Bundesliga clubs also scouted Jamison at the U17 World Cup in Indonesia. One thing is for certain: it will only be a question of time until Jamison becomes the latest Orange County SC export. “I see Bryce going to a bigger club; he can definitely make it higher up and follow Korede to Europe and play in whatever league at the highest level,” Karlsen said. “He is only 17 and has a lot to learn, but his potential is huge.”
From December 1 to 24, we introduce new players from different countries born in 2006 and 2007. Area managers, users, and data scouts come into play as experts throughout the series. You can follow all those players by adding them to your TM watchlist.
Talent calendar
- Date of birth/Age:
- Jan 6, 2006 (18)
-
Nat.:
- Current club:
- Orange County SC
- Contract until:
- Nov 30, 2024
- Position:
- Right Winger
- Market Value:
- €350k
- Date of birth/Age:
- Oct 31, 1997 (26)
-
Nat.:
- Current club:
- Manchester United
- Contract until:
- Jun 30, 2028
- Position:
- Left Winger
- Market Value:
- €60.00m
- Total Market Value:
- €4.31m
- Competition:
- USL Championship
- Manager:
- Morten Karlsen
- Squad size:
- 25
- Latest Transfer:
- Ben Norris
