Dora High School’s first football team took the field in 1925 under head coach J.K. Hall. The inaugural Bulldog squad finished the six-game season 2-2-2 with wins over Oakman and Quinton.

During the Great Depression, the Civilian Conservation Corps went to work around Dora building bridges, libraries, schools, and football fields. In 1937, Dora played their first game inside their new football stadium, Watkins Field. The new stadium was named after Sam. J. Watkins, the mayor during the early 1930s and helped raise money for the new school.

Between that first season in 1925 and 1933, the Bulldogs had six different head coaches combine for a record of 32-35-9. Coach Loy Vaughn went 33-16-3 between 1934 and 1939 and, in 1951, The Birmingham News awarded a “mythical” state championship to Dora (8-1-0).

The 1959 season saw the Bulldogs go undefeated for the first time ever, outscoring opponents 302-63 under fourth-year head coach Wallace Reid. They shut out Carbon Hill, Parrish, and Corner on their way to a perfect 10-0 record.

As the population of Walker County began to grow, the need for new schools became necessary and the Walker County Board of Education began working on a new facility in Dora near Highway 78. Crews completed the new Dora High School in 1969.

One of the men who championed the new school was named Horace Roberts, an icon in the Dora community.

He owned a small store down below Dora.

“If somebody was having a hard time and came in needing food, they left with food,” Gene Gravlee said.

According to Gravlee, there was a forest fire that broke out below Dora, and several homes were threatened by the blaze. Roberts took his tractor and rode into the fire plowing firebreaks to save homes.

In 1971, the year after the first class graduated from the new high school, the Bulldogs took the field on the newly christened Horace Roberts Field.

Dora has captured eight region championships, the first in 1978 when the Bulldogs finished 9-2 in Class 3A, Region 9. That same year was also the Bulldogs’ first Playoff appearance.

Dora has had 87 players named to All-State teams, including 30 named 1^st-team all-state.