BY D MARK MITCHELL
OPINION —
A packed house at Duck Samford Stadium got exactly what it expected Friday night: another hard-fought chapter in the Auburn-Opelika rivalry.
With both teams battling for important Class 6A Region 2 positioning, defense ruled the night for three quarters. Auburn carried a slim 7-3 advantage into the fourth quarter before the game erupted into a dramatic finish.
The Tigers opened the final period during a promising drive. Cason Myers connected with James Pate on a 21-yard pass before finding Andres Turnbough for 14 yards on a critical third-and-11.
Jaeden King powered his way to the Bulldogs’ 13 yard line, and Myers capped the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run, extending the Tigers’ lead to 14-3 with a little over half remaining in the quarter.
Opelika, however, refused to fold.
The Bulldogs quickly turned to a little trickery to spark their comeback. Austan Cristiaan lateraled the ball to Justin Patterson, who fired a pass to a wide-open Matthew Pritchett for a 37-yard TD. A successful two-point conversion trimmed the deficit to 14-11 with 4:56 left to play.
Suddenly, momentum shifted.
The Tigers’ offense stalled on its next possession, giving Opelika the ball at its own 29 yard line with a chance to come back.
Cristiaan connected with Pritchett for a 12-yard gain to start the drive. But on the very next snap, Auburn’s Ryan Donaldson snagged a game-changing interception with 2:01 remaining.
Given new life, Auburn turned to King, whose 20-yard run allowed the Tigers to drain the remaining clock.
Opelika head coach Jonathan Chandler said he was frustrated after the three-point loss.
“We had our chances; you don’t get a redo, the game is over and we must move on despite being disappointed in this loss,” Chandler said. “We’ve got to get back to work and be prepared for Smiths Station [on Oct. 16] in our last regular season home game.”
The win improved Auburn to 4-2 overall and 3-1 in Region 2 play. Opelika dropped to 2-3 overall and 2-2 in region competition.
Up next: Opelika at Dothan
Opelika travels to Dothan for a game with Dothan High School at Rip Hewes Stadium on Friday at 7 p.m. Dothan is 2-4 and dismissed head coach Jeb Kennedy four games into the season after the board voted not to extend his contract after the 2026-27 school year.
Opelika should take care of business against the Wolves and come away with a win.
Fans can listen to Opelika vs. Dothan by listening to WKKR 97.7 Kicker FM, the free iHeartRadio app or online at kickerfm.com.
Volleyball
The Lady Bulldogs find themselves amidst a five-game winning streak that dates back to Sept. 23. Since then, Opelika has defeated Beauregard 3-1, Central 3-0, Eufaula 2-0, Benjamin Russell 3-0 and Smiths Station 2-0.
The run of good form sets the Lady Bulldogs up for a strong finish to the season and in good position to make the regional tournament should they win at least one game in the Class 6A Area 4 tournament later this month.
Cross country
Caroline Couey has continued an excellent season for Opelika’s girls cross country team, finishing first in the Thompson XC Classic at the University of Montevallo on Sept. 26. Couey finished first in the girls 5,000-meter race with a time of 18:28.90, which was just over 15 seconds faster than the second-place finisher.
Flag football
Despite a 26-0 loss to Auburn on Sept. 30, the Lady Bulldogs flag football team has won four of its last six games and will look to close the season out with more wins. Opelika traveled to Dothan to face the Lady Wolves on Tuesday and will close the season out with road trips to Smiths Station on Oct. 15 and Carver-Montgomery on Oct. 22.
If they prevail in at least two of those games, the Lady Bulldogs should be in a position to contend for one of the final spots in the Class 6A playoffs
Local football games
Auburn vs. J.A.G.
Loachapoka at Fayetteville
Lee-Scott vs. Westminster Christian
Beulah vs. Slocumb
Trinity Christian at Heritage Christian
Southern Christian vs. Evangel Christian
LaFayette at Winterboro
Chambers Academy at Lowndes Academy
Valley at Elmore County
Lanett vs. Dadeville
Springwood vs. Heritage
Southern Prep at Abbeville Christian
Reeltown at Central Coosa
Russell County vs. Rehobeth
Benjamin Russell vs. Pike Road
