Although the college football season will not kick-off with Saturday night games until late August, fans in Walker County won’t have to wait until the final week of the month to watch a classic gridiron clash.
The Cordova Blue Devils will host the Dora Bulldogs in the 98th meeting of Walker County’s oldest rivalry on Saturday night, Aug. 21 at Hudson-Kerby Stadium.
Both head coaches – Cordova’s Shane Smothers and Dora’s Chavis Williams lauded the move to play the game on Saturday night, embracing the past of when the contest was traditionally played, as well as the present and the future to mark the beginning of their respective tenures.
“It’ll be like when I was back in school when you could see a game on Saturday night. Both of our schools and communities love football and what better way to start a season but on Saturday night with the longest rivalry in our county?” Smothers said. “It’s a win for the fans, the schools and the players.”
“Having the game back on Saturday was a brilliant idea. When coach Smothers called me about it, I was in agreement 100 percent. To give our guys and Cordova’s a chance to play on Saturday night with a huge audience is a blessing,” Williams said. “It’s two communities that are close together in terms of distance, both with coal mining backgrounds and blue collar work ethics – when their schools get together, it’s always something special.”
With Cordova leading the overall series, 49-46-2, the Blue Devils are not only eager to start the season with a victory, but also break a four game losing streak to the Bulldogs. Dora, which won last year’s meeting 21-6, will look to make it five in a row and establish momentum for the rest of 2021.
