We’ve reached the 10-week warning for the 2025 season, and races across the USL are only getting more fascinating at a player and club level. A Phillip Goodrum brace propelled the Louisville striker to the top of the Golden Boot hunt this weekend, and two helpers from Taylor Davila brought him into a three-way tie for the assist crown. LouCity’s in-state rivals in Lexington leapfrogged into the Western playoff field, while numerous Eastern bubble teams blew their shot to do the same.
What else stood out in Week 24, and how’s it driving the USL Championship Power Rankings? Let’s dig in.
1. Louisville City
Trending: No change
Result: 4-2 win at Miami
Louisville’s strength lies in the controlled chaos they foster, but there’s one phase of the game where they’re wonderfully formulaic: long throws. Rookie defender Josh Jones stands alongside North Carolina’s Mikey Maldonado as one of the USL’s two long-throw maestros, and LouCity maximizes that ability with a very specific design that they hammer again and again.
I'm obsessed
— John Morrissey (@usltactics.com) 2025-08-17T00:23:58.117Z
The setup is simple. You start with Jones on either sideline, then push a runner toward the pocket between the endline and the edge of the six-yard box. That player isn’t intended to be a shooter. Instead, they’re meant to flick a header off of Jones’ service, setting up a teammate closer to the penalty spot – a prime region from which to shoot.
