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11 Games to Circle in the USL Championship in October

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 10/01/21, 3:00PM EDT

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From rivalry games to potential playoff deciders, the final month of the season is full of big games


Could we see a showdown for first place in the Championship's Central Division to highight the final day of the regular season on October 30 between Birmingham Legion FC and Louisville City FC? | Photo courtesy Birmingham Legion FC

We’ve reached the final month of the 2021 USL Championship Regular Season, and while there are a few things that are or are close to settled, there’s still a lot to look forward to across the final four weeks of the campaign.

Among those are the conclusion to some notable rivalry series – some of which had major playoff implications – and contests that will determine which teams reach the 2021 USL Championship Playoffs, and the bracket for November’s postseason.

Here are 11 we think you should have circled for the upcoming month (yes, we turned the dial up to 11). Find out why, and make sure to tune on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and ESPN Plus as this season nears its conclusion.

Louisville City FC
Central
October 3 | 3:00 p.m. ET
Lynn Family Stadium
New Mexico United
Mountain

When the USL on ESPN schedule was announced at the start of the season, you might have penciled this interconference matchup as one of the most intriguing on the slate. As we get closer, it appears that is the case with both teams in need of victory as LouCity fights for top spot in the Central Division and New Mexico looks to bolster its position in the Mountain Division playoff race. If we’re looking for comparatives, LouCity has gone 2-0-1 in its non-division games so far this season, while New Mexico has gone 1-2-2, but the level of talent on both sides should make this a compelling afternoon of action in Louisville.

El Paso Locomotive FC
Mountain
October 6 | 9:00 p.m. ET
Southwest University Park
San Antonio FC
Mountain

Coming into October, El Paso Locomotive FC is on a 21-game undefeated streak at Southwest University Park across the regular season and playoffs over the past two seasons. That’s put it on a course to vie for not only the Mountain Division title but also the best record in the Championship should it maintain that standard over the final month of the season. Its next home encounter, though, is against the last side to defeat Locomotive FC in the league as San Antonio FC’s Justin Dhillon scored a stoppage-time winner at Toyota Field on August 28. Chasing second place themselves, SAFC will try to repeat that feat on the road and bring Locomotive FC’s streak to an end.

Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
Atlantic
October 10 | 6:00 p.m. ET
Highmark Stadium
Tampa Bay Rowdies
Atlantic

The Tampa Bay Rowdies have been one of the best road teams in the Championship over the past two seasons – in that span they’ve won 12 out of 20 regular season games and have a +10-goal differential away from home, while also winning the Eastern Conference Final at Louisville City FC last year. One venue they’ve yet to find success at, though, is Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC’s Highmark Stadium, where earlier this year the side played to a 0-0 draw to remain winless in four visits overall since it joined the Championship in 2017 (0-1-3). With the Hounds currently in second place in the Atlantic Division standings and looking to hold off Miami FC and the Charlotte Independence for a home playoff game, this Sunday evening encounter could produce a fascinating contest that will see the Rowdies going hard for all three points in their pursuit of the best record in the league at the end of the regular season.

Orange County SC
Pacific
October 13 | 10:00 p.m. ET
Championship Soccer Stadium
Phoenix Rising FC
Pacific

This meeting is the second of two in the month between Orange County SC and Phoenix Rising FC at Championship Soccer Stadium, and it should provide a key moment for both clubs in their seasons. For Orange County, there’s a chance at a top-two finish in the Pacific Division at stake if it can continue what’s overall been an upturn in form under interim Head Coach Richard Chaplow, especially if it can maintain its six-game home undefeated streak since 2017 against Rising FC in the regular season. For Rising FC, the division title is basically a lock, but the goal of finishing with the best record in the Championship and earning homefield advantage in the playoffs is still out there. This game could determine how that battle with El Paso Locomotive FC and the Tampa Bay Rowdies turns out.

Charlotte Independence
Atlantic
October 16 | 7:00 p.m. ET
Memorial Stadium
Charleston Battery
Atlantic

If you’ve been checking out the early editions of the Championship’s Playoff Projections, you’ll already know it’s a longshot at this point for the Charleston Battery to catch the Charlotte Independence for the fourth and final playoff place in the Atlantic Division. There’s more than just the postseason at stake here, though, with the preseason agreement that the Southern Derby contested by the two sides would play out over their final two meetings of the season. The Battery took a 2-0 win on July 23 at Patriots Point to gain the edge in the series as it heads to American Legion Memorial Stadium, and with a win would retain its rivalry crown for a third consecutive year as well as boost its slim playoff hopes.

San Diego Loyal SC
Pacific
October 17 | 6:00 p.m. ET
Torero Stadium
New Mexico United
Mountain

San Diego Loyal SC starts the month well on the way to its first trip to the USL Championship Playoffs, but it needs to maximize its remaining games to ensure a home playoff game is waiting for them when November arrives. That and the attacking instincts the side has shown this season, with the side sitting in the Top 10 in the Championship in goals scored with 41, should make for an entertaining game against a like-minded New Mexico United club that will likely still be fighting for its postseason berth. United has been in far better form to close September than it entered with Chris Wehan’s return and the influence of Amando Moreno and Sergio Rivas coming to the fore, and it will need to be against a SD Loyal side which will have plenty to play for in front of its great support at Torero Stadium.

Tampa Bay Rowdies
Atlantic
October 20 | 7:30 p.m. ET
Al Lang Stadium
The Miami FC
Atlantic

The Tampa Bay Rowdies have had the upper hand on most teams they’ve faced in building a lead at the top of the Atlantic Division, but its South Florida rival Miami FC is one of the exceptions. After the Rowdies took victory when the teams first met at Al Lang Stadium early this season, Miami responded with two victories on home turf at FIU Stadium as unlikely heroes Callum Chapman-Page and Othello Bah scored the winners in a pair of 2-1 results. That leaves the Rowdies needing victory back on home turn to continue its drive to finish with the best record in the Championship and homefield advantage in the postseason, but to square the series and retain the Coastal Cup after claiming the renewal of the rivalry series a year ago.

Orange County SC
Pacific
October 20 | 10:00 p.m. ET
Championship Soccer Stadium
San Diego Loyal SC
Pacific

There’s plenty of business to be taken care of by both Orange County SC and San Diego Loyal SC before the two sides meet for the final time this regular season at Championship Soccer Stadium in the penultimate week of the season, but chances are this game will decide which of the two teams ends up in second place in the Pacific Division and earns at least one home game in the 2021 USL Championship Playoffs as a result. San Diego enters the month with the edge in the standings by three points, but Orange County SC holds a game in hand that could make up the deficit with a win. The visitors also hold the edge in the projections, sitting at a 55 percent chance to finish second with Orange County at 38 percent as the month starts. If the sides are within three points of each other at kickoff, though, all of that will go out of the window as two sides with serious talent put it all on the line.

Rio Grande Valley FC
Mountain
October 23 | 8:30 p.m. ET
H-E-B Park
New Mexico United
Mountain

Just as in the case of Orange County SC and San Diego Loyal SC above, there are potentially going to be twists and turns before Rio Grande Valley FC hosts New Mexico United in the penultimate weekend of the season. Among them is a meeting between the teams at Isotopes Park on October 9, which could also have a big say in how much this game matters in the end. We’re hoping it does, because instead of playoff position, the Toros and United will potentially have their playoff places at stake as they meet in South Texas. RGVFC hammered away to no avail when the sides last met as New Mexico took victory on home turf and could need a similar performance – with more goals this time – as its playoff life could be on the line in front of its home fans.

Birmingham Legion FC
Central
October 30 | 7:30 p.m. ET
BBVA Field
Louisville City FC
Central

There was a point when it looks reasonably certain that Louisville City FC was going to walk to the Central Division title in the same way the Tampa Bay Rowdies, El Paso Locomotive FC and Phoenix Rising FC appear to be in their respective groups. That’s no longer the case as we enter October with only two points separating LouCity from second-placed Birmingham Legion FC with six games to go in the campaign. Legion FC’s run of back-to-back wins coupled with consecutive draws on the road has made this a serious race, and one that if we’re lucky could come down to the final game of the regular season for both sides. If first place is on the line, expect a full-blooded clash at BBVA Field for the division crown and the edge in homefield advantage during the postseason to come.

San Antonio FC
Central
October 30 | 8:30 p.m. ET
Toyota Field
Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
Mountain

The season ends as it began for San Antonio FC and Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC after the sides met on May 1 at Toyota Field and conclude the regular season with another meeting at the same venue. There could be a lot on the line in this matchup as well, with the Switchbacks sitting in second place in the Mountain Division holding a three-point lead over San Antonio, which holds a game in hand in third position. Should both sides continue their positive form over the final month of the campaign, second place in the standings, and a home playoff game, could be on the line as a Switchbacks’ side with potential record-setter Hadji Barry faces the talent led by San Antonio’s Jose Gallegos. The quality in both squads was going to make this a great game to watch regardless, but the stakes could take it to another level.

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