What to Watch: Stephenville vs Kilgore in 4A DI UIL State Championship
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The Stephenville Yellow Jackets will have an opportunity to add their name to the history books when they take the field for the Class 4A Division I Texas high school football state championship game this week in Arlington.
Stephenville (15-0) will look to wrap up a perfect season in their first state title game appearance since 2021, where the Jackets will face the Kilgore Bulldogs (14-1) in the 4A DI UIL Football State Championship game at 11 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 19, at AT&T Stadium.
Here’s an in-depth look at what to watch and everything you need to know about the Yellow Jackets’ matchup against the Bulldogs in the 4A DI football state championship game:
WHAT’S AT STAKE FOR STEPHENVILLE
The Jackets will have a lot to play for Friday morning, including a perfect 16-0 season and their seventh state championship in school history.
Additionally, though, a victory over Kilgore in the 4A DI state title game would mean something far greater for Stephenville in the big picture.
With a win in Friday’s state championship game, the Yellow Jackets would move into a tie for first place with Abilene High and Brownwood for the most UIL football state titles for a Big Country high school in history.
Furthermore, it would firmly cement the Yellow Jackets as the Big Country’s most dominant 11-man football dynasty of the modern era – with seven state championships since 1993.
Within the context of the Yellow Jackets’ own storied history, though, a win Friday would help catapult the Jackets’ 2025 squad into the discussion of the greatest Stephenville football teams of all time.
A victory would make the 2025 Yellow Jackets the fifth team in Stephenville football history to finish a season 16-0 and the first Jackets squad to finish undefeated since 2021.
The Yellow Jackets are also 6-0 all time in UIL Football State Championship game appearances.
MOST ELITE DEFENSES IN 4A DI COLLIDE
Texas high school football fans would be hard pressed to find a pair of more elite defenses than Kilgore and Stephenville in Class 4A.
Both the Bulldogs and Yellow Jackets have held their opponents to 10 points or less in 10 of their 15 games this year.
Kilgore boasts three shutouts during a dominant run to the state championship game, which included landslide victories over East Texas powers Stafford (42-0), Bridge City (34-0) and La Vernia (49-0).
The Bulldogs are only allowing 8.5 points per game defensively this season. Kilgore has all the hallmarks of one of the Lone Star State’s most well-rounded defensive units, but the Bulldogs might meet their match against the Yellow Jackets.
Stephenville’s defense brought back 10 of 11 starters from a robust unit that led the Yellow Jackets to the regional finals.
The Jackets’ defense is only surrendering 9.5 points per contest and has routinely pitched second-half shutouts against some of its toughest opponents, like Canyon West Plains in the regional finals.
From a stacked secondary and a loaded defensive line to a strong linebacker corps, Stephenville’s defense has no cracks on any level.
Senior linebacker Hudson Butchee, who anchors the Yellow Jackets’ defense in the middle, has racked up a team-high 145 tackles, 15 tackles for loss and seven sacks this season.
Up front, Army commit and senior defensive tackle Kolton Dearth headlines an elite group of pass rushers that possess an unparalleled combination of size, speed and strength in the trenches.
In the back end, Stephenville’s secondary boasts one of the state’s stingiest pass defenses after tallying 14 interceptions and 34 pass break-ups through 15 games this season.
JACKETS’ BIG GUYS CAUSING BIG PROBLEMS
If Stephenville can beat Kilgore to bring home its seventh state title in school history, then the biggest reason why will be the Yellow Jackets’ potent combination of size, strength, athleticism and experience along both the offensive and defensive lines.
A common theme for the Jackets’ opponents in 2025 has been struggling to match Stephenville’s physicality in the trenches, particularly when close games stretch deeper and deeper into the second half.
In signature victories over Abilene Wylie, Ruston (LA) and West Plains, the Yellow Jackets dictated tempo and ran away with all the momentum once the second half kicked off.
Despite facing a 21-7 deficit with two minutes left in the first half against West Plains, Stephenville pitched a second-half shutout defensively and then rattled off 34 unanswered points offensively – mainly because the Jackets seized total control of the line of scrimmage.
On the defensive side, Stephenville’s front seven has led the charge in recording 43 sacks and 153 tackles for loss. The Yellow Jackets’ ability to swarm the pocket, pressure opposing quarterbacks and eliminate inside running lanes has made it extraordinarily difficult for most opponents to sustain drives against them.
The Jackets’ single greatest advantage, though, is their offensive line.
All five of Stephenville’s starters along the offensive line are seniors and juniors who all are listed as measuring between 280 and 315 pounds, giving the Yellow Jackets’ a college-football-sized O-line at the 4A high school level.
Few of Stephenville’s opponents have been able to match its size up front, but even fewer have been able to keep pace with their speed, conditioning and sheer strength.
STEPHENVILLE’S RELENTLESS RUSHING ATTACK
The main beneficiary of the Yellow Jackets’ outstanding offensive line play this year has been the Jackets’ relentless rushing attack, spearheaded by junior running back Zyler McClendon and junior quarterback Trot Jordan.
Both in their first full season as starters, Jordan and McClendon have been nothing short of sensational for Stephenville.
McClendon – the Yellow Jackets’ bellcow back – has topped the 100-yard rushing mark in seven of 15 games so far this year.
His power running between the tackles and athleticism when stretching the field on outside runs makes McClendon a genuine threat to score from anywhere on the field when he touches the ball.
He has racked up 1,617 yards and 28 touchdowns on the ground while averaging 8.2 yards per carry so far this season.
In the postseason, McClendon has tallied 437 rushing yards and nine touchdown runs despite several blowout victories with limited touches along the way.
Jordan, meanwhile, has shown himself to be a capable dual-threat quarterback in his first year leading the Yellow Jackets’ offense.
He’s thrown for 3,163 yards, 44 touchdowns and four interceptions on 189 of 284 passing, but he’s made his important contributions recently with his feet.
Jordan has tallied 474 rushing yards and five touchdowns when scrambling this season, but that doesn’t tell the full story. The junior signal caller has greatly expanded his presence in Stephenville’s running game throughout the postseason.
He set new career highs in rushing yardage in each of the last three rounds of the playoffs, beginning with 55 yards on the ground against Canyon Randall.
Then Jordan reeled off two critical long touchdown runs and finished with 87 rushing yards on 10 carries to help fuel the Jackets’ comeback win over West Plains in the regional finals.
Finally last week against Celina in the UIL state semifinals, Jordan topped the century mark for the first time by running for 103 yards on 16 carries to help secure a 24-21 nail-biter of a win for the Yellow Jackets.
This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: What to Watch: Stephenville vs Kilgore in 4A DI UIL State Championship
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