Of the Philadelphia Union homegrowns who made their debuts this season, 18-year-old Jack McGlynn may have had the most significant arc of them all, going from earning his first start early in the season to burying a shootout penalty in the playoffs that helped send the Union to their very first Eastern Conference Final.
McGlynn stepped into the starting lineup in May, after Jose Martinez earned a two-game red card suspension for karate chopping NYCFC’s Taty Castellanos. With Leon Flach sliding into the defensive midfielder role, McGlynn took over the spot at the left side of the diamond.