Ryan Baker - Journalist

A pivotal weekend lies in front of the Madison Radicals as they travel to Chicago for a matchup with the Union on May 31, then return to Breese Stevens Field on June 2 to host the Detroit Mechanix. 

Playing two games in a weekend is never an easy task. It takes a toll on your body, especially playing at such a high level. While the roster may not be set for the second game of the weekend, it’ll be a matter of who can stay healthy. Another factor will be the result of the Chicago game, depending on a win or a loss, you may see some different players get rostered for the Detroit game.

“It definitely has a negative effect on your body. The worst thing we can do is treat our bodies poorly during the week, and then expect to come out and play well in both games. Proper sleep and nutrition will definitely be the key to a strong start and strong finish this weekend,” said Victor Luo.

After dropping their home opener to the Minnesota Wind Chill, the Radicals stand a chance at regaining some momentum by taking down a team, in the Union, that just went down to Texas and beat the Houston Havoc and the Austin Sol. Currently, Chicago sits above Madison in the Central Division at 3-1, so a win would gain some ground on Minnesota, given their bye week this week, and push them above the Union. 

“It will help take off some of the pressure. For us to continue to give ourselves breathing room; and have the ability to go into a game, and not feel like it's a must win. If we can get a couple of wins it will really set us up for the rest of the season,” said head coach Tim DeByl.

Looking specifically into the Chicago game a bit more; Chicago presents a similar lineup as the Wind Chill. A few playmakers that have the height advantage in John Lithio and Joe Weis, a deep lineup that has the next man-up mentality, and veterans such as Andrew Sjogren and Sam Kaminsky that have seen the Radicals a ton.

“What's interesting right now in the division, at least both Chicago and Minnesota, they really present matchup problems. They have some really tall cutters. We had the Rehder, Quinn Snider combination last weekend, and I think we struggled with it. Then, Chicago has the Lithio and Weis combo. They're just big, strong, tall, and fast receivers, who can throw,” said DeByl.

However, the Union will be without Joe White and Jack Shanahan for their second home game in their new stadium for this matchup, but adds former Radical, making his 2024 debut, Henry Goldenberg. Another former Radical that will be in this matchup for Chicago is Jake Rubin-Miller, who has accrued eight blocks in four games. Playing former players happens a lot, especially for Madison, and while there is no ill-will towards them, banter will surely be taking place between the two teams.

“Losing players like Henry and Jake would be a loss for any team. They are great players. You can bet there will be banter. Between Jake and I, that’s just a lot of trash talking, and we will see what comes of it on Friday. At the end of the day though, no matter what’s said, they are still players that I respect, and look up to whether they are on my team or not,” said Jacob Wham.

“It's always bittersweet. I really like those guys. We’ve missed them and Rubin-Miller is having an incredible start to the season. There’s nothing but goodwill towards those guys, and I wish them luck but obviously, we want to beat them,” said DeByl.

Looking at the roster for Madison for the Friday night matchup; they will be without veterans in Andrew Meshnick and Avery Johnson, along with an injured Max Sample still sidelined with a rib injury. Other than those three, a very familiar road roster for the Radicals will be traveling to Martin Stadium, with the return of Jack Kelly, who will be making his 2024 UFA debut. 

The Radicals have been able to play at a higher pace this year with more throwers in the backfield, but an arguably bigger impact have been guys who either saw the field very little last year or not at all. Those impact players have been rookies Gabe Vordick and Pieran Robert, along with guys like Mitchell McCarthy and Mac Weber. The latter two have combined for nine assists and five goals, along with McCarthy yet to throw an incompletion on 42 attempts. 

“I think the biggest thing is taking a lot of the learning from the system last year and being able to apply it to this year. All the vets and the coaching staff are super helpful in talking about their experience, and what they are seeing on the field. It really helps to gain that knowledge, feel their support, and feel more comfortable on the field,” said Weber.

Moving on to the Detroit game, the Radicals will have the chance to give their fans what they wanted to see in their home opener against the Wind Chill. The two have already played each other this year, and Madison was able to handedly wrap up that game with a 17-point win. The focus may be on Chicago right now, but they are well aware they’ll need to lock in right after to be able to beat Detroit.

“We're about trying to win games as efficiently as we can. We're going to go in, and at least start, with a pretty similar strategy. We'll have to adjust as the game goes on, but I think until proven otherwise, we're going to play  a lot of matchup defense and see what happens,” said DeByl.

Walking out 2-0 on the weekend would place Madison with a record of 4-1, and effectively put them right under Minnesota in the standings with a great chance to build off of some momentum. But again, that is much easier said than done. 

“Any time you can get two wins in a weekend is a massive win. Chicago is another litmus test in how we stand up in the division, with a slightly different play style than Minnesota. Coming into that game with energy and focus will pay a lot of dividends. The second game against Detroit will be a test of mental fortitude. You never want to overlook Detroit, especially coming off a game where we will definitely be ground down physically and mentally,” said Luo.

The game against the Union will be this Friday at 7 p.m. CDT, then will be followed up with the Detroit game taking place at 5 p.m. on Sunday night. It’ll be a battle of the mind and body for the Radicals, and ideally they can walk out with two wins and a fully healthy squad as they approach the midway point in the season. 

To watch both games, click here!
Tickets for Detroit game Sunday click here!