Justin Nuoffer
Forward Madison: Could this be the year for a league title?
This isn’t terribly profound, but despite its lack of championship games, September is the best sports month of the year. At the same time Major League Baseball sorts out its playoffs, college and NFL football are setting up their early season narratives. Of course, University of Wisconsin sports fans now have a very compelling volleyball program to watch. And soccer fans can choose from men’s and women’s teams at UW-Madison and Forward Madison at Breese Stevens Field, and an increasingly accessible TV schedule of Premier League and other European action on weekend mornings.
It’s almost too much to take in!
So allow me to help by focusing your attention on a few offerings from Wisconsin teams over the next month.
Monday, Sept. 16 – Sunday, Sept. 22
Milwaukee Brewers vs. Philadelphia and Arizona
American Family Field, Bally Sports Wisconsin
This late-season homestand may also be one of the Brewers’ toughest of the season, as they welcome the National League East-leading Phillies and wild card Diamondbacks. Plenty of observers expected the Brewers to fall off this season after the departures of manager Craig Counsell and starting ace Corbin Burnes. While Milwaukee appears to be coasting to a relatively easy division title, their performance against two other National League contenders over these seven games will be a good indication of their playoff readiness.
Tuesday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m.
Wisconsin volleyball vs. Marquette
Kohl Center, Big Ten Network
Tickets are already scarce for this tilt at the 17,000-seat Kohl Center, a fantastic showcase for the increasingly popular sport, but maybe not so great for the Badgers, who are used to playing in the friendly confines of the UW Field House. Fans will recall their loss to Florida in 2022, the last time they hosted an opponent at the Kohl Center. Marquette is a ranked program, but the Badgers beat them a year ago at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.
Saturday, Sept. 21, 5 p.m.
Forward Madison F.C. vs. Spokane Velocity
Breese Stevens Field
The third-place Flamingos have more draws this season (7) than any other team in USL1, but a win against mid-table Spokane, their only league home game in September, will help secure a first-round bye in the playoffs and sew up a home field advantage. Forward has scored 11 more goals than their opponents this year, the first time they haven’t been outscored since 2020. Could this be the club’s best shot at winning a league title? They hosted first-place Charlotte in Madison on Aug. 14 and played to a 0-0 draw.
Saturday, Sept. 28
Wisconsin Badgers football at USC
Time and TV TBD
Alabama’s visit to Camp Randall on Sept. 14 is understandably getting a lot of attention from fans, but this visit two weeks later to the Los Angeles Coliseum will be a much better measure of where the Badgers stand in the expanded 18-team Big Ten. The Trojans carry one of the biggest brands in college football, but they don’t often sell out the Coliseum, which doesn’t show up on any lists of hostile college football environments. It might end up scheduled for the evening, giving Wisconsin fans a taste of late-night games from the West Coast.
