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Alabama HS Team Preview: Opelika Bulldogs

January 24, 2024
Austin Sharp
Alabama Scouting Director

The 2024 high school baseball season is quickly approaching and as usual, excitement abounds throughout the state. Players and coaches have been working in preparation for the upcoming season and, as is the case each year, there are some very talented players and teams across Alabama.

Teams across the state have goals and aspirations to finish their seasons in the Jacksonville/Oxford/Montgomery area at the AISA or AHSAA state championships, but there is plenty of work to be done before that becomes reality. We hope to familiarize our readers with many of the teams across the state as we preview individual teams across Alabama. We will take you right up to first pitch this season with these team previews and by continuing our scheduled podcasts and releasing our preseason top-10 rankings in each AHSAA classification.

Please keep checking back throughout the season as we will be your one-stop shop for everything related to high school baseball across the state.

Each week we will be releasing our Players of the Week, updating the top-10 ranks in each AHSAA classification, as well updating our Power 25 overall rankings. One thing, especially, you don’t want to miss are our scheduled podcasts with guests from across the state, as well as the recaps and previews of the big games we’re covering.

*Please note the information has been gathered from head coaches across the state, based on their replies to the questionnaire we distributed over this offseason.

High School: Opelika Bulldogs
Head Coach: Zach Blatt
Classification: AHSAA Class 7A
Area Number: Class 7A, Area 4
2023 Record (Finish): 13-18 (No Postseason)
No. of Returning Positional Starters: 6
No. of Returning Pitchers: 6
Team Strengths: Returning Pitching, Depth, Experience

 

TOP RETURNING PLAYERS

SS Brodie Jones (1/7/24)

MORE UPPERCLASS FOLLOWS

Class of 2025

C/RHP Tyler Johnson (1/7/24)

TOP UNDERCLASSMEN

TEAM OUTLOOK

The Opelika Bulldogs enter the 2024 season with a strong core of returning talent both at the plate and on the mound, most of which were primary contributors on last season's team. The Bulldogs missed the playoffs last spring, but will look to change that this spring while relying on their pitching, which should be one of their main strengths in 2024.

After moving up to Class 7A last spring, the Bulldogs were placed in one of the state's toughest areas, regardless of classification, going up against Central-Phenix City, Smiths Station, and Auburn. Two of those teams (Central-Phenix City, Smiths Station) made the Final Four in 2023, which speaks to how difficult it is to finish at the top of that area. The Bulldogs do believe, however, they'll be able to take a step forward this spring while returning 185/199 IP on the mound. They also have experience at all positions on the infield, and there are some other players who seemed primed to make a sizable impact for Opelika this spring. Speaking of the returning pitching staff, RHP/OF Jackson Killcreas (Chipola CC, 2024), RHP Russell Copous (Central Alabama CC, 2024), and RHP/1B Christopher Floyd (Coastal Alabama-South CC, 2024) are a trio of returning senior right-handed pitchers who tossed the majority of the innings pitched last year on the mound. Kilcreas features one of the more nastier sliders in the state, while Copous and Floyd were also very effective in their own right as juniors last season. SS Brodie Jones (2025), one of the top-ranked shortstops in the 2025 class in AL and former PBR Future Gamer, will look to lead the offense again this spring after sporting a .397 batting average a sophomore a season ago. He will definitely be a crucial piece to their offensive once again in 2024, and is coming off a standout showing at the South AL Preseason All-State in early January. LHP/1B Davis Ford (2025), another prospect in attendance at the South AL Preseason All-State, has tossed tons of meaningful innings for the Bulldogs the last couple of years as an underclassmen, and should be one of their main pitchers in the rotation this spring after posting a 3.80 ERA in 2023. C/RHP Tyler Johnson (2025) will be a quality addition to the roster this spring carrying a physical presence to the plate and providing more depth on the mound, while 1B/RHP Slade Clayton (2025) is another junior who should play an important role for the Bulldogs. Another player to watch for this spring will be RHP Landon Rudd (2026), who also has a chance to throw meaningful innings on the mound. 

The Bulldogs seem to certainly have enough pieces both at the plate and on the mound back for another season, as they all will look to lead this team and take the next step forward in a tough area. They'll once again compete in Area 4 against Auburn, Central-Phenix City, and Smiths Station at the end of the regular season for a berth in the playoffs. Expect Opelika to once again be a competitive club in Class 7A in 2024.

Find more information on the 2024 Opelika High School program below:

+ Follow them on X: @BaseballOpelika
+ Visit the Prep Baseball Alabama, 2024 HS Team Previews

FOLLOW PREP BASEBALL ALABAMA THROUGHOUT THE SPRING

+ Prep Baseball Alabama on X
+ Prep Baseball Alabama on Instagram
+ Prep Baseball Alabama on Facebook

 

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