Orlando City Signs First-Round Draft Pick Jack Lynn

Orlando City SC announced the signing of 2022 first-round MLS SuperDraft selection Jack Lynn today. Lynn, 22, agreed to a one-year contract, with club options in 2023, 2024 and 2025. The Lions selected the Notre Dame product at No. 18 overall in the most recent SuperDraft.

“We’re thrilled to get Jack signed before the start of the season and are confident that he’s a great fit for the group,” said Orlando City SC Executive Vice President of Soccer Operations and General Manager Luiz Muzzi in a club press release. “We were excited to get him where we did in the draft and have loved the effort and dedication that we’ve seen from him this preseason, as well as how he’s fit into the group already.”

The St. Louis, MO native has already appeared with the Lions in preseason and scored a goal in the team’s first scrimmage — a 5-4 loss against Minnesota United.

The 6-foot-2 striker played four years with the Fighting Irish, appearing in 79 matches (57 starts) and scoring 31 goals and adding eight assists in his collegiate career. He put 81 of his 184 shots on target, scored 12 game-winning goals and went a perfect six for six from the penalty spot with Notre Dame.

A first-team 2020-2021 All-ACC first team selection, Lynn was part of one of the best leagues in collegiate soccer. During the 2019-2020 season he received second-team All-ACC honors. Lynn got on the field early in his career, playing in all 21 of his team’s games as a freshman in 2018.

With Lynn’s help, Notre Dame made a deep run in the NCAA tournament this past season, bowing out to eventual national champion Clemson in penalties in the College Cup. Lynn scored a goal in that match against Clemson, which finished 1-1 before the Tigers won 5-3 in the penalty shootout.

What It Means for Orlando City

Lynn will not be under any pressure to step in and provide lots of minutes in his first season. The young forward is known for his work ethic and for showing up in big moments, and he comes from good bloodlines, as his father, John, was a college soccer player at Saint Louis.

With Orlando moving on from Derek Dodson, Lynn will become the team’s developmental forward. But the Lions still have several players ahead of him in the pecking order, including Designated Player Ercan Kara and veterans Alexandre Pato and Tesho Akindele. Learning from those players and training with them every day, Lynn could develop into a solid forward for Orlando.

The club has two 2022 draft picks who remain unsigned — Marshall defender Nathan Dossantos and UCF forward Nick Taylor.