As the 2025 season continues, three Colorado Rapids players are gaining valuable minutes and development experience on loan across the USL Championship. Defenders Michael Edwards and Nate Jones, along with forward Bryce Jamison, have each played meaningful roles for their respective clubs while showcasing their growth in competitive environments.
Michael Edwards – Charleston Battery
Michael Edwards, 24, joined Charleston Battery on loan on May 6 and has quickly established himself as a reliable presence along the backline. The 6’4” defender has made five appearances in USL Championship play, all starts, totaling 450 minutes. Charleston is undefeated with Edwards in the lineup, with four wins and one draw, including one clean sheet.
This past weekend, Edwards came off the bench in the 69th minute of a 1-0 road loss to Miami FC—Charleston’s first defeat with Edwards in the lineup. Miami scored the match’s lone goal in the 51st minute, prior to Edwards’ entrance. The Battery remain unbeaten in matches where Edwards starts.
In his first USL Championship match of the season, Edwards helped Charleston to a 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rowdies, where he faced former teammate Ethan Bandré, who was with the Rapids during the 2024 season.
His Charleston debut came just days earlier in the U.S. Open Cup, where he played the full 90 minutes in a road match against MLS side D.C. United. The appearance carried added significance for Edwards, who began his youth career in the D.C. United Academy. He also featured in the Jägermeister Cup, logging 45 minutes.
Now in his fourth season with the Rapids, Edwards originally joined the club as a Homegrown Player ahead of the 2021 season after Colorado acquired his Homegrown Priority rights from D.C. United. He spent three years with VfL Wolfsburg in Germany, progressing from the U-19s to Wolfsburg II, before returning to the U.S. to begin his MLS career.
Since making his Rapids debut on April 26, 2023, in a U.S. Open Cup match against Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC, Edwards has made seven first-team appearances and scored two goals across all competitions. He scored his first club goal in the U.S. Open Cup on May 9, 2023, at Sacramento Republic FC. He made his MLS debut on May 11, 2024, at home against the San Jose Earthquakes and netted his first MLS goal on September 18, 2024, in a road win at Sporting Kansas City.
In league play, Edwards has made five MLS regular-season appearances with two starts, logging 233 minutes. He has also featured in two U.S. Open Cup matches and been a key contributor for Rapids 2 over the past three seasons, making 41 appearances and recording 3,420 minutes with two goals and one assist.
Before earning his first-team debut, Edwards spent time on loan with Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC in 2021 and 2022, helping the team reach the Western Conference Quarterfinals and Conference Finals, respectively.
Charleston recently added another familiar face with Colorado ties: midfielder Jeremy Kelly, who was selected ninth overall in the 2020 MLS SuperDraft by Montréal and immediately traded to the Rapids. Kelly made eight appearances for Colorado across all competitions in 2020.
Next Match: July 2 @ Birmingham Legion FC (USL Championship) – 6 p.m. MT
Nate Jones – Las Vegas Lights FC
Jones was loaned to Las Vegas Lights FC on January 21 and made his club debut in a 1-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rowdies on March 8. The match featured a familiar face on the opposing bench, as former Rapids teammate Ethan Bandré was listed as a substitute for Tampa Bay. In his second match, Jones faced New Mexico United and went up against Marlon Vargas, a familiar face from Rapids 2 with whom he made 21 appearances in 2024.
Since joining Las Vegas, the 23-year-old defender has made seven appearances in the USL Championship, all of them starts, totaling 437 minutes. He also logged 156 minutes for the club in the USL Jägermeister Cup. His most recent appearance came this past weekend, when he helped post a shutout in Las Vegas’ 2-0 win over Spokane Velocity in the Jägermeister Cup. On April 5 against Orange County SC, where fellow Rapids player Bryce Jamison started and played, Jones was part of the matchday squad but did not appear in the match.
Jones enters his second season with the Rapids after being selected fifth overall by Austin FC in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft. Colorado acquired his rights via trade shortly after the draft. In his first professional season, he made 25 appearances for Rapids 2 in MLS NEXT Pro and added one appearance in the U.S. Open Cup.
Prior to joining MLS, Jones starred at the University of Washington. He was named First Team All-Pac-12 and earned United Soccer Coaches First Team All-Far West Region honors after recording a career-high three goals and two assists as a senior. In 2022, he anchored a Washington defense that limited opponents to just 144 shots on goal and was named to the Pac-12 All-Conference Second Team.
The 6’3” center back has brought his collegiate pedigree and size to the professional ranks, and his loan in Las Vegas is providing him with regular minutes to continue adjusting to the pace and physicality of the pro game. Like Edwards, Jones’ loan includes a right of recall at any point this season.
Next Match: July 4 vs Sacramento Republic FC (USL Championship) – 8:30 p.m. MT
Bryce Jamison – Orange County SC
After officially signing with the Rapids on April 4, Jamison returned to Orange County SC on loan for the remainder of the 2025 season. The 19-year-old forward has made 12 appearances across all competitions this year, including eight in USL Championship play, three in the Jägermeister Cup, and one in the U.S. Open Cup. He has recorded two goals and one assist in league play, scored in his Open Cup outing, and logged 177 minutes across the three Jägermeister Cup matches.
His most recent match came this past Saturday, June 28, when he logged 76 minutes in Orange County’s 1-0 win over Sacramento Republic in the Jägermeister Cup.
Jamison’s first USL Championship appearance of the season came against Las Vegas on April 5, with Rapids teammate Nate Jones on the opposing bench. His most recent outing came in a 3-0 win over El Paso Locomotive FC, a side led by Wilmer Cabrera, who served as an assistant coach with the Colorado Rapids from 2012 to 2014.
Jamison has spent the past four seasons with Orange County SC after signing with the club in 2022. He has made 80 appearances in league play, recording eight goals and six assists during that time. Prior to turning pro, he developed at the Barcelona Residency Academy in Arizona, where he represented both the U-17 and U-19 teams. He helped lead the U-19s to a division title in the MLS NEXT Southwest Division during the 2021–22 season and finished the year with seven goals in 13 matches. His breakout performances earned him a spot in the inaugural MLS NEXT All-Star Game in 2022. Jamison’s youth career also included time with the Atlanta United Academy.
At the international level, Jamison has been a regular with the U.S. Under-17 National Team and is now part of the U-19 setup. He made his international debut on September 6, 2023, in a friendly against Ukraine and went on to represent the United States at the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup. He appeared in all three group stage matches against South Korea, Burkina Faso and France, as well as the Round of 16 match against Germany. Most recently, he played all 90 minutes for the U.S. U-19s in a 1-1 draw against Ukraine U-20 on June 10, 2025. The match featured another Rapids connection, as Jamison lined up alongside Keyrol Figueroa, the son of Maynor Figueroa, who played for the Colorado Rapids in 2015. Keyrol entered in the 62nd minute and assisted the equalizing goal in the 70th.
Jamison continues to show promise as one of the top young American forwards, and his loan stint in Orange County is giving him the platform to further his development while maintaining a key role with his former club.
Next Match: July 3 at Loudoun United FC (USL Championship) – 5 p.m. MT
Looking Ahead
With Edwards anchoring an unbeaten run in Charleston, Jones gaining consistency in Las Vegas, and Jamison showcasing his skill set with club and country, all three players are making the most of their loan opportunities. The Rapids will continue to monitor their growth as they build toward future contributions in Burgundy and Blue.