OPINION —
Opelika (3-2, R 3-1) beat Prattville (2-3, R 1-2) 38-13 on Senior night at Bulldog Stadium last Friday night. The Bulldogs piled up 459 yards of total offense, 209 rushing yards and 259 passing yards while holding the Lions to 220 total yards.
OHS scored 38-points including two touchdowns in the first quarter. Jhavin Williams opened the scoring with a 4-yard TD run and Jamari Miller scored the second TD after catching an 18 yard pass from QB Roman Gagliano. In the second quarter Gagliano ran 15-yards for a TD and Johnni Cesena made a 27-yard field goal to end the first half with 24 points.
Miller scored his second TD after catching a 18-yard pass from Gagliano in the third quarter. Calvin Hughley sprinted 62-yards for the last TD. Will Carroll was five for five on PAT.
Individually for Opelika, Gagliano was 10 for 11 with 250 passing yards and rushed three times for 38-yards and another TD; Miller caught three passes for 100-yards and two TD’s; Hughley rushed 7 times for 99 yards and a TD; and Jamarvion Jenkins made 12 tackles to lead the defense.
The win over region opponent Prattville keeps the Dogs chances of finishing second in the region and a home playoff game alive.
Opelika travels to Mobile to play 6A Theodore (3-2) for the second time in the history of the two schools Friday night. The Bobcats beat Opelika 34-24 last year at Bulldog Stadium.
THS hired Hall of Fame coach Steve Mask after the former head coach joined the staff at South Alabama. Mask led St Paul’s to four state championships in 10 seasons as head coach. Mask left Pell City after one season to take the Theodore job.
Although an important game for OHS, this is not a region game and does not effect any playoff seeding for either team. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. in Theodore. Tickets can be purchased online at gofan.com or at the stadium. Fans can listen to the game on WKKR 97.7 Kicker FM, online at kickerfm.com and on the free iHeartRadio app. Van Riggs and his crew start the broadcast at 6:30 p.m.
WRESTLING FUNDRAISER
Opelika’s wrestling program is holding a pickleball tournament to raise money for the upcoming season. The tournament is for doubles only and will have men, women and mixed brackets. There will be trophies for first, second and third place. Cost is $50 per person and $100 for a team. For more information contact David Simpson at Opelika High School, 334-745-9715.
OCS BOARD OF EDUCATION
The Opelika Board of Education approved the five year capital plan for the school system. The five year plan includes a new turf baseball field and new turf on the football field, new junbotron and new lighting system at Bulldog Stadium and Bulldog Park. There are many other items included in the five year facilities plan except for upgrading the OMS track and practice field behind Opelika Middle School. The track is in bad shape and needs to be upgraded and repaired. One of the board members inquired about the OHS Track during the meeting but the board voted 4-0 to approve the plan without plans to renovate and upgrade the oldest track on any school property. The next OCS Board of Education meeting is Oct. 24.
D. Mark Mitchell is the sports director at iHeartMedia, host of “On the Mark” Fox Sports the Game 910-1319, co-chair of the Auburn-Opelika Sports Council, chairman of the Super 7 and Dixie Boys Baseball state director.
