Head coach Andi Herzog will be relying on six U-20 players to help his side earn a spot in next summer's Olympic Games in Brazil.
The old coaching adage about players being old enough as long as they are good enough applies to the current U.S. Under-23 national team, which features a crop of young talents ready to prove they can handle playing against players up to five years older in some cases.
The nucleus of the impressive U.S. U-20 team that pushed eventual U-20 World Cup champion Serbia to penalty kicks in the World Cup quarterfinals is poised to play a crucial role in the Olympic qualifying tournament, which kicks off Thursday night against Canada.