North Carolina FC is pleased to welcome back a familiar face ahead of the return to the USL Championship in goalkeeper Jake McGuire. McGuire becomes the sixth new signing for North Carolina FC ahead of the return to the USL Championship and the club now has 15 players under contract with McGuire the first keeper on the roster.
Get to know the newest member of North Carolina FC with our Quick Kicks series:
Welcome Back, Jake
McGuire was the starting goalkeeper for North Carolina FC in 2021. In his lone season with North Carolina FC, McGuire started 21 games, making 74 saves with a 66.4% save percentage and collecting seven clean sheets. He was also awarded the league’s Save of the Week honor three times. McGuire then moved on to play for USL Championship side Miami FC, where he started 23 games and collected eight clean sheets across two seasons.
Putting the ‘Gold’ in Golden Hurricane
McGuire had an accomplished college career with the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, where he finished as the program’s shutout (17), minutes (6,360), and games (67) leader, while ranking second in saves (245). In his senior season, he was an All-Conference and All-Region selection and was named the Most Outstanding Defensive Player of The American Tournament after two saves in penalty kicks in the championship game against South Florida to lead Tulsa to a third straight AAC Championship and berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Man of Steel
McGuire was drafted by the Houston Dynamo in the 2017 MLS Super Draft, but the goalkeeper did not make an appearance for Houston. He eventually joined the Philadelphia Union during that year and the Union then loaned McGuire to affiliated USL Championship team Bethlehem Steel FC for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. McGuire made a combined 43 starts in those two seasons, making 141 saves and keeping 10 clean sheets. He holds the team’s career records for saves and save percentage.