With both teams back in the same 7A area classification, they can now compete again for postseason championships. Auburn Advance reporter Christopher Mendoza explores how that changes the nature of this longstanding rivalry.
The Auburn High School and Opelika High School have been rivals since 1914 when Auburn petitioned the state high school commission to take away the “Lee County High School” county flagship status.
Since 1914, the rivalry has been a staple in Lee County High School athletics with the Bulldogs and the Tigers meeting at least once in every sport nearly every year.
In the 2014-2015 season, the AHSAA introduced the new 7A classification for the schools in the state with the highest enrollment numbers. With the introduction of 7A, Auburn moved up a classification while Opelika stayed in 6A.
Eight years later, the Bulldogs moved up to join Auburn in 7A in the 2022-23 season. While the teams still play each other the same amount of times every year, the rivalry takes on a new meaning as the teams have returned to playing in the same classification.
Softball: April 4-5
Boys soccer: April 15
Girls soccer: April 15
Baseball: April 19-20
With both teams playing in the same classification, they compete in the same region. This means a win in the games against each other now carries postseason implications.
Jamie Williams has experienced both sides of the rivalry, having previously coached at both and now as the athletic director for Opelika. Williams said the new level of rivalry with added implications will help both teams grow in the future.
“I think both sides help each other,” he said on the Feb. 23 Auburn Advance podcast in February. “If I’ve got to compete against you, and I’ve got to beat you, I’m going to have to elevate our game. It helps both groups and it’s a good rivalry when you look at it.”
Opelika head basketball coach Wesley Button noted that from a fan stand point, the two sets of fans have continuously brought the same intensity over the years; same classification or not. Where he has seen a difference in how the players and coaches have approached the game.
“I felt like I did a lot more preparation for these games now that there are the big area games now,” Button said. “The intensity in the rivalry has always been there, they just draw a different field this year now that they’re in the same area.”
Auburn head basketball coach Chris Brandt shares the same sentiment as Button that the rivalry is always intense. Brandt, however, believes the rivalry had lost the true sense of rivalry it had when he was a student at Auburn.
“Both ways, everybody took that 365 days and held it over each other's heads, but when we split classification it almost became a friendly rivalry,” Brandt said before the matchup between the two teams in January. “It wasn’t where it left a bad taste in our mouth for a long time after losing, now we’re getting back to the point that where it's going to be more fierce.”
Whether the rivalry did at some point lose its true rivalry feeling or not, the two teams competing against each other for and in the postseason is bound to bring a new meaning to one of the premiere rivalries in Lee County.
“There’s a lot of implications to this game… it’s all about seeding to win your area regular season so you can host the tournament,” Brandt said. “Both teams are going to give their heart and soul.”
— By Christopher Mendoza, The Auburn Advance
