BY D. MARK MITCHELL
OPINION —
Sometimes a loss reveals more about a football team than a win ever could.
Last Thursday night in Prattville, Opelika walked into the home stadium of Class 6A’s top-ranked team and came within minutes of pulling off one of the biggest upsets of the season. The Bulldogs ultimately came up short in a 20-17 loss.
Those who watched the game saw a team play hard for 48 minutes, Opelika stunned the Lions early. Braiden Howard electrified the Bulldogs’ sideline with a 98-yard interception return for a touchdown, setting the tone for what would become a defensive showcase.
Jordan Jackson later broke free for a 26-yard touchdown run as Opelika raced to a 14-0 first-quarter lead.
Against the state’s No. 1-ranked team, the Bulldogs looked confident, physical and determined.
Just as impressive was Opelika’s defense, which forced three interceptions. Howard added another pick in the end zone during the first half, preventing a scoring opportunity, while Jamel Griffin came away with an interception in the third quarter. For much of the night, the Bulldogs frustrated one of the most explosive offenses in Class 6A.
But championship-caliber teams rarely go away quietly.
Prattville began chipping away at the lead with a field goal before halftime and trailed just 14-3 at the break. The Lions continued their comeback, pulling within 14-9 entering the fourth quarter before eventually taking a 17-14 advantage late in the game.
Yet Opelika never folded.
The Bulldogs responded with a tying field goal with roughly five minutes remaining and appeared poised to force overtime or perhaps steal a victory. Instead, Prattville delivered one final drive. The Lions converted a crucial fourth-down play to keep possession alive before kicking a 28-yard game-winning field goal as time expired.
The final score was painful for Opelika, which fell to 4-5 and suffered its third one-score loss of the season.
Still, there was little disappointment in head coach Jonathan Chandler’s postgame comments.
Instead, there was pride.
“We’ve got a team by golly,” Chandler said during the postgame show on the KICKER. “And we’re going to take it one play at a time. It meant something to us tonight, and I hate that it’s taken us nine games to doggone figure it out. But we’ve got a team, and we’re a bonded team.”
Those words may ultimately define the Bulldogs’ season.
A month ago, some teams might have packed it in after facing adversity. Opelika has done the opposite. The Bulldogs have continued to compete, continued to improve and now appear to be playing their best football when it matters most.
And perhaps the biggest win of the week came before the weekend even arrived.
Carver-Montgomery’s decisive victory over Enterprise secured fourth place in Region 2 for Opelika, giving the Bulldogs a first-round home playoff game against Alma Bryant. Had Enterprise won, Opelika would have opened the postseason on the road.
Instead, the Bulldogs get another week at home and another opportunity to prove what they showed last Thursday night.
The record says 4-5.
The performance against Prattville says something entirely different.
If Opelika can carry the same effort, toughness and unity it displayed against the Lions into the postseason, the Bulldogs might be a far more dangerous playoff team than their seed suggests. For the first time all season, Opelika looks like a team that believes.
And that may be the most important development of all.
First round of AHSAA football playoffs
Opelika (4-5) will host Alma Bryant (3-7) Friday night at Bulldog Stadium, kickoff is set for Friday, Nov. 6, at 7 p.m. The Hurricanes finished fifth, with a 2-4 region record. Alma Bryant’s three victories were against:
Greenville 23-20, Robertsdale 29-27 and beat winless Davidson (24-21) in the last regular season game. The seven losses were against St. Pauls (58-28), Daphne (42-21), Foley (28-26), Mary G. Montgomery (16-6), Leflore (44-14), Fairhope (35-0) and Baker (21-14).
Based on their record, you can tell Alma Bryant is not on the same level as Opelika; however, that’s why they play the game. Opelika is looking to start the playoffs hot, and make a run to the AHSAA Football Championship game in Mobile.
Playoff tickets are controlled by the AHSAA. You must buy tickets online at gofan.co. No reserved seating, All seats are general admission.
Fans can listen to the Alma Bryant/Opelika playoff game on WKKR 97.7 Kicker FM presented by the Orthopaedic Clinic, beginning at 6:30 p.m.
If Opelika wins, they will travel to Fairhope to play the Pirates under head coach Caleb Ross, who spent one year as OHS head coach.
Cross Country
Opelika’s girls and boys Cross Country Team competed in the Class 6A sectional meet last Thursday at Kiesel Park in Auburn. Congratulations to Caroline Couey, who finished first with a time of 18:32.64 in the girls race.
Below are results for the OHS Runners.
Girls 5,000 meters run
1st Caroline Couey 18:32.64
23rd Lillian Massey 22:35.19
26th Katherine Fernandez 22:51.79
31st Kaliegha Watson 24:27.24
36th Libby Cottrell 25:07.44
39th Yenifer Lucas 25:28.14
44th Sophia Tucker 26:51.27
Boys 5,000 meters run
5th Knox Newland 17:28.96
17th Drew Schoonhoven 18:15.70
21st Rashad Ware 18:31.13
22nd Erik Fernandez 18:34.19
25th Jaiden Keyes 18:50.69
28th Sutton Soltau 19:03.29
35th Luke Cates 19:31.50
41st John Greer 20:22.16
53rd Tyler Stovall 22:30.59
55th Liam Cade 22:48.13
