MACON, Ga. – Crank up Willie Nelson, because the early part of the 2021-22 season will have the Macon Mayhem feeling like they are “On The Road Again.”
The Macon Mayhem released their 2021-22 schedule on Friday, and it’s one that’ll see Macon log plenty of time on the road.
Macon, which opens the season on Oct. 15 at Knoxville, plays at home just twice in its first 14 games, the home opener being Oct. 29 against Fayetteville. That stretch will include the lone trip of the season to the state of Illinois or Indiana, Oct. 22-23 at Peoria.
Not only that, but a two-game set against Evansville on Nov. 26-27 will be the Mayhem’s first back-to-back stretch of home games. By having so few games at home early, it means that Macon has the luxury of not having to compete attendance-wise often against high school football on Friday nights or college football on Saturdays.
Another long spell of road games will arrive in December. Spanning from Dec. 17 to Jan. 8, two contests against Knoxville, and one against Huntsville will be followed up by a combined three in a row against the Marksmen.
But as road-heavy as the Mayhem schedule is to start the season, it’s as stacked with home games to wrap the season up. Not only will Macon play its final seven at home, capping it off with two games against Pensacola, it’ll also play at the Macon Coliseum for all but four out of 19 games after Feb. 17. That stretch includes the only matchup of the season against Vermillion County on March 25-26.
Macon fans hungry for revenge against defending President’s Cup Champion Pensacola will get their wish as the Mayhem play the Ice Flyers ten times. Last year, Macon was unbeaten in regular-season play against Pensacola.
Ten games against one opponent is a lot, but Pensacola won’t be the Mayhem’s most-played foe this year. That distinction will go to Fayetteville with the teams playing 14 times, six in Macon. Those games could end up being a reunion of sorts. Of the players on Fayetteville’s protected list, three spent considerable time with the Mayhem this past season – Stathis Soumelidis, Josh Victor, and Brian Bowen.
Fayetteville won’t be the only team that opted out last year of which Macon will frequently play. Other than Peoria, the longest travel distance for Macon as far as road games will be against Roanoke. The Mayhem and Railyard Dawgs play seven times, twice in Macon on Dec. 10-11. The first road trip to Roanoke is Dec. 6-7 with other road games being Jan. 27, March 18-19. And speaking of former Mayhem players, Mayhem goalie Jake Theut, the reigning SPHL goaltender of the year, was protected by Roanoke, meaning that another potential Mayhem player from last year could be at the Macon Coliseum in a different uniform than last season.
