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NEW CANEY — Kilgore will play for a state championship for the first time since 2013 after a 38-13 win over La Vernia in the Class 4A Division I semifinals Friday night at Randall Reed Stadium.

“It’s been a grind,” Kilgore head football coach Clint Fuller said. “It didn’t just start back in August. It’s been going since January. We made up our mind last offseason that we weren’t going to be denied, that we were going to do what it took to get to this point. I’m just so proud of our team for the way they responded through the course of the offseason, the summer and during the season. We just kept getting better and better every week. That’s the mark of a great football team.”

Kilgore will now face Celina in the Class 4A Division I championship at 3 p.m. on Dec. 20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

Kilgore had been eliminated by Chapel Hill from the playoffs in three straight seasons, including in the regional final the past two years. But last week, Kilgore cleared that hurdle with a 30-6 victory to get to Friday’s state semifinal. And there was no letdown from the Bulldogs after finally breaking through.

“I think we learned our lesson on that deal earlier in the season,” Fuller said. “We take everyone seriously. When you’re going to play a semifinal game, you shouldn’t have to have a whole lot of motivation, so our kids were ready to go. We had a great week of prep, and we came out and played well tonight.”

It was another dominant defensive effort for the Bulldogs (13-2), who allowed two touchdowns or fewer for the seventh straight game and 11th time this season.

“I believe we’ve got the best defense in the state,” Kilgore quarterback Kayson Brooks said. “I will go to war with those guys any day. It makes me feel even better as a quarterback to know that I’ve got the best defense. No matter if we go score or not, our defense is going to get a stop, and we’re going to be able to go do our part, execute and put some points on the board.”

After throwing for just 79 yards on eight completions in the first half, Brooks threw for 157 yards in the second half on 12 completions as the Kilgore offense put up 21 second-half points to put the game away.

La Vernia took the ball first and Kilgore forced a punt attempt. However, a high snap resulted in a 13-yard loss, allowing Kilgore to take over at the La Vernia 8-yard line. The Bears’ defense was able to hold Kilgore to a field goal, which was made from 22 yards out by Eddie Jimenez to make the score 3-0 with 8:39 on the clock.

A 57-yard kickoff return by Sean Garza set La Vernia up in Kilgore territory. The Bulldogs pushed the Bears to fourth and 21 to force a punt.

Later in the quarter, a 14-yard La Vernia punt set the Bulldogs up at the 50-yard line, and Kilgore needed five plays to find the end zone as Brooks broke free for a 29-yard touchdown run to put Kilgore up 10-0 with 2:26 left in the first quarter.

Early in the second quarter, the Bulldogs put together a seven-play drive and converted on fourth and 6 with a 30-yard touchdown pass from Brooks to LaKeyleon Graves to make the score 17-0 with 10:15 left in the second quarter.

La Vernia eventually got on the board with a 1-yard touchdown run by Keegan Hajek in the final 10 seconds of the half to make the score 17-7 at halftime.

Kilgore tried to add to its lead midway through the third quarter with a 25-yard field goal attempt, but a mishandled snap didn’t allow the kick to be tried. The Bulldogs responded with a defensive stop and a 5-yard Isaiah Watters touchdown run to make the score 24-7 with 3:56 left in the third quarter.

The Bulldogs added to their lead with 11:51 left in the game on a 59-yard pass from Brooks to Michigan signee Jayden Sanders, pushing the score to 31-7. La Vernia scored with 6:49 on the clock with a 6-yard Hajek run.

Kilgore later got a 45-yard interception return by Ja’Kalen Sheffield to set up a 3-yard Watters touchdown run with 1:51 to play.

Kilgore had 54 rushing yards on 18 carries and 290 total yards. Brooks was 20 of 32 for 236 yards and two touchdowns. Graves had six catches for 68 yards; Javon Towns five for 51 yards; Jacory Walton five for 33 yards and Sanders two for 60 yards.

La Vernia (11-4) three players carry the ball at least 14 times. Garza had 24 carries for 65 yards, Hajek 20 carries for 61 yards and Ty Carter 14 carries for 65 yards. Hajek was 0 of 7 passing for zero yards. The Bears’ only completion was a 31-yarder by Luke Green on a fake punt in the first half.

“It definitely means a lot,” Sanders said, “but the job surely isn’t finished. We’ve got to go in this week, put our heads down, get to work and achieve this ring.”

“It means a lot,” Graves said. “This is family, our bond is so tight. We ain’t did this in 20 years, so we’ve got a chip on our shoulder.”

Kilgore’s last state championship victory came in 2004.