2026 AAA Team Preview: Rison Wildcats
February 23, 2026
The Arkansas high school baseball season kicks off on Mar. 2, opening day for regular season action under AAA regulations. Leading up to opening day, we’ll be publishing our team previews ahead of the 2026 spring season, touching on programs spanning all state classifications, counting down to the official Prep Baseball Arkansas Preseason Power 25 Rankings.
Perennially, we’ve submitted a preseason questionnaire to high school head coaches across the entire state. Their responses have been flooding in and we’re using the detailed insight they’ve provided in our team-by-team preseason analysis.
Our 2026 preseason coverage continues today.

Head Coach: Chad Cope (24 years)
Classification: 3A
2025 Record (Finish): 19-7
2026 SEASON OUTLOOK
No. of Returning Position Players: 4
No. of Returning Pitchers: 3
Top Returners:
- Noah Matheson (2027) - P/SS
- Texas A&M-Texarkana commit
- Mason Weaver - P/2B
- CJ Edwards - P/1B
- Brayden Terry - P/CF
Top Newcomers:
- Easton Billings
- Logan Mcgarrity
- Brody Howard
- Trent Southerland
- Hayden Ford
- Tyler Barnes
- Griffin Weaver
Key Players Lost:
- Lawson Kidd
- Ayden Laws
- Thomas Wilson
- James Jacobs
- Andrew Coutoure
- Aron Tilley
- Austin Johnson
Coach’s Insight: “Pitching experience will be a strength this year while depth could be a weakness.” – Chad Cope, head coach
Find more information on the 2026 Rison program below:
+ Visit Prep Baseball Arkansas’ 2026 AAA Team Previews page to learn more.
+ If you are a high school coach and didn’t receive our questionnaire, please click HERE to fill out the form
