Pike Road vs. Opelika: Live Score Updates from Alabama high school football battle

Follow along live as Pike Road and Opelika face off in a clash of Alabama schools

Opelika football / Jake Crandall/ USA TODAY NETWORK

Two of the Yellowhammer State's best will square off on Friday night as Opelika hosts Pike Road in a battle of Alabama high school football powers.

Opelika is also 4-1 and ranked No. 6 in the Alabama 7A High School Football Computer Rankings, as the Bulldogs dominated Smiths Station last Friday.

Opelika beat Pike Road 31-20 in their previous meeting last September. We will have to see if the Bulldogs can take care of the Patriots again.

Players to Watch

Pike Road

• Gunner Gibbs - QB: Sophomore

• O'Mari Smith - WR: 3-star senior

Opelika

• Colby Key - QB: Junior

• Dre Vann - WR: Senior

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Let us know who you think will win by trying your hand at our Pick 'Em Challenge.

Live Updates

(Refresh this page repeatedly for live updates from this contest, once it gets underway.)

	1	2	3	4	F
Pike Road	15	7	0	0	22
Opelika	7	10	7	0	24

Preview

- Kickoff at 8:00 pm ET / 7:00 pm CT

1st Quarter

- Bulldogs get the ball first. They start at their own 41. The drive results in Colby Key throwing a 32-yard touchdown pass to Dre Vann. Extra poiint good with 8:00 left in the first quarter.

TOUCHDOWN: Opelika 7, Pike Road 0, 8:00 left in 1st.

Patriots begin at their own 16. They drive down the field on multiple plays. Braylon Outlaw scores on an eight-yard touchdown run. Extra point good with 4:00 left in the first.

TOUCHDOWN: Pike Road 7, Opelika 7, 4:00 left in 1st.

Bulldogs start the ensuing drive at their own 20. They go three and out and are forced to punt.

Patriots start at their own 41 again. INJURY TIMEOUT: Norman Matthews of the Bulldogs gets taken off the field due to a leg injury.

Patriots go for it on 4th and 1 at their opponents' 38, as Braylon Outlaw keeps it for a 38-yard touchdown run. Two-point conversion good with 45 seconds left in the first.

TOUCHDOWN: Pike Road 15, Opelika 7, 0:45 left in 1st.

Bulldogs begin at their own 20. Time runs out on the drive.

End of 1st: Pike Road 15, Opelika 7

2nd Quarter

- Bulldogs go three and out and are forced to punt.

Patriots begin at their own 21. They go nowhere and punt.

Bulldogs begin at their own 47. Jordan Waits breaks through with a long run to their opponents' 16. Bulldogs end up kicking a field goal with 8:34 left in the half.

FIELD GOAL: Pike Road 15, Opelika 10, 8:34 left in 2nd.

Patriots begin at their own 20. They go three and out and are forced to punt.

Bulldogs take over at their opponents' 42. The drive results in a CJ Johnson 10-yard rushing touchdown for the lead. Extra point good with 5:26 left in the half.

TOUCHDOWN: Opelika 17, Pike Road 15, 5:26 left in 2nd.

Patriots begin the ensuing drive at their own 20. They don't get much going and punt.

Bulldogs begin at their own 42. Offsetting penalties on both teams. On 3rd and 28, they don't move the ball, but a facemask penalty gives them life.

However, Key throws a pass that is intercepted by the Patriots' Jordan Holmes, who breaks some tackles and takes it to the 8.

Patriots take over at the 8 for 1st and goal. On 2nd and goal, Outlaw takes it in from two yards out for his third touchdown of the night. Extra point good with 2:26 left in the half.

TOUCHDOWN: Pike Road 22, Opelika 17, 2:26 left in 2nd.

Bulldogs begin the ensuing drive at the 50. But a bad snap results in a fumble and the Patriots recover at their opponents' 41.

Bulldogs take two timeouts. Patriots go three and out and punt.

Bulldogs start their next drive at their own 39. They drive up to their opponents' 36. A late hit on quarterback Whit Cooper results in an extra play. But an offensive penalty offsets it.

Bulldogs attempt a 53-yard field goal at the end of the half, but it hits the upright and it's no good. Patriots get penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct.

End of 2nd: Pike Road 22, Opelika 17

3rd Quarter

- Patriots receive the opening kickoff to the second half. They begin at their own 28. A big run gets negated due to an offensive holding call. The Patriots go three and out and are forced to punt.

Bulldogs begin at their own 33. They don't get much going and have to punt.

Patriots begin at their own 29. They also go three and out and punt.

Bulldogs begin at their own 24. On 4th and 1, CJ Johnson breaks out a big run for the first down at the opponents' 36.

Bulldogs run a reverse play as Jalynn Washington rushes all the way to the 4. Two plays later, Johnson takes it in from six yards out for the touchdown. Extra point good with 1:11 left in the third quarter.

TOUCHDOWN: Opelika 24, Pike Road 22, 1:11 left in 3rd.

Patriots begin the ensuing drive at their own 11. Time runs out.

End of 3rd: Opelika 24, Pike Road 22

4th Quarter

- Patriots go three and out and are forced to punt. A bad punt results in the Bulldogs taking over at the Patriots' 25.

Bulldogs miss a 37-yard field goal as the Patriots take over at their own 20. Braylon Outlaw rushes 42 yards up to their opponents' 16.

However, the Patriots get two offensive holding calls that move them back to the 28. On a trick play, Jordan Holmes fires a pass to the end zone but it's intercepted by the Bulldogs' Braiden Howard. Holmes gets injured.

Bulldogs take over at their own 1. Jordan Waits breaks away with a huge run to their own 35. They keep driving down the field into Patriots territory with less than two minutes left. They drive to the red zone and run the clock out, ending the game.

FINAL: Opelika 24, Pike Road 22

RECAP

Two 4-1 schools in Alabama faced off as Opelika hosted Pike Road on Friday night. The game was close throughout, but the Bulldogs were able to escape with the 24-22 victory.

The win was special for Opelika head coach Bryan Moore, who just won his 100th game.

The Bulldogs opened the contest with a Colby Key touchdown pass to Dre Vann. But Pike Road responded with two rushing touchdowns from Braylon Outlaw on wildcat plays.

In the second quarter, Opelika took back the lead with a CJ Johnson touchdown run. But the Patriots responded with Outlaw's third touchdown of the night to take a 22-17 lead at halftime.

The lone score in the second half came in the third when Johnson scored his second red zone touchdown of the game. Pike Road tried to answer late in the contest, but Jordan Holmes' long pass to the end zone was intercepted, sealing it for the home team.

The Bulldogs improve to 5-1 while the Patriots fall to 4-2.