Breaking Down the History of the Carthage vs. Kilgore Football Rivalry

Carthage and Kilgore may not have played once in the last four years, but don't let that hiatus fool you. These are programs and fan bases with a lot in common and plenty of mutual history.

Carthage and Kilgore, which play at noon Friday in the Class 3A Division I state championship in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, are separated by 42.7 miles and 45 minutes, according to Google Maps.

Both teams have Bulldogs as their mascot and their primary color is red. While they have battled almost 50 times in their football histories and certainly aren't the very good friends on the gridiron, they both reserve a stronger disdain for the program between them geographically: the Henderson Lions.

Carthage and Kilgore last played in 2009, a 29-17 Carthage win to start head coach Scott Surratt's second of three consecutive 3A Division II state championship runs. That snapped Carthage's 10-game losing streak to Kilgore, which erased a three-game series deficit to take the all-time edge under head coach Mike Vallery.

These programs played 28 times from 1956-85, skipping years only in 1969 and 1984. Carthage and Kilgore then again shared the same district 14 consecutive years from 1988-2001.

Below is a table with year-by-year results of all 48 Carthage vs. Kilgore meetings, along with a tally of the all-time series edge and notable seasons/moments in the programs' histories. Hopefully this helps East Texas football fans outside of the "boomtown" Kilgore and the "gas capital" Carthage gain a scope of the depth of history between these two powerful programs.

Carthage vs. Kilgore Football Rivalry

Year-By-Year Results

Kilgore leads all-time series 27-21

• 1951-- Carthage 20, Kilgore 0
  • Non-district game
• 1952-- Kilgore 27, Carthage 8
  • Non-district game
• 1956-- Kilgore 20, Carthage 6
  • 3A district game
• 1957-- Kilgore 26, Carthage 19
  • 3A district game
• 1958-- Carthage 46, Kilgore 8
  • 3A district game; Carthage finished 11-0-1
• 1959-- Kilgore 26, Carthage 12
  • 3A district game
• 1960-- Carthage 16, Kilgore 14
  • 3A district game
• 1961-- Kilgore 14, Carthage 6
  • 3A district game
• 1962-- Carthage 14, Kilgore 5
  • 3A district game
• 1963-- Kilgore 15, Carthage 14
  • 3A district game
• 1964-- Kilgore 26, Carthage 14
  • 3A district game
• 1965-- Carthage 20, Kilgore 0
  • 3A district game
• 1966-- Carthage 27, Kilgore 13
  • 3A district game
• 1967-- Carthage 21, Kilgore 13
  • 3A district game
• 1968-- Carthage 41, Kilgore 6
  • 3A district game
• 1970-- Carthage 6, Kilgore 0
  • 3A district game
• 1971-- Kilgore 21, Carthage 0
  • 3A district game; longtime Carthage coach Sleepy Reynolds' first game vs. Kilgore.
• 1972-- Kilgore 27, Carthage 14
  • 3A district game
• 1973-- Kilgore 31, Carthage 20
  • 3A district game
• 1974-- Kilgore 14, Carthage 10
  • 3A district game
• 1975-- Carthage 16, Kilgore 0
  • 3A district game
• 1976-- Kilgore 19, Carthage 18
  • 3A district game
• 1977-- Kilgore 7, Carthage 6
  • 3A district game
• 1978-- Carthage 24, Kilgore 0
  • 3A district game; Carthage finished 11-1
• 1979-- Carthage 21, Kilgore 13
  • 3A district game
• 1980-- Kilgore 22, Carthage 0
  • 4A district game
• 1981-- Carthage 31, Kilgore 6
  • 4A district game
• 1982-- Carthage 16, Kilgore 6
  • 4A district game; Carthage finished 9-2-1.
• 1983-- Carthage 28, Kilgore 13
  • 4A district game; Carthage finished 11-3 and reached its first state semifinals.
• 1985-- Carthage 15, Kilgore 9
  • 4A first-round playoff; Carthage finished 9-3-1.
• 1988-- Kilgore 17, Carthage 0
  • 4A district game; Kilgore finished 9-2-1.
• 1989-- Kilgore 17, Carthage 14
  • 4A district game
• 1990-- Carthage 41, Kilgore 0
  • 4A district game; Carthage finished 8-3-1.
• 1991-- Carthage 32, Kilgore 6
  • 4A district game; Carthage finished 15-1 and lost 35-16 to A&M Consolidated in the state championship, CHS' first state title appearance.
• 1992-- Kilgore 38, Carthage 14
  • 4A district game; Kilgore's 24-point win came against a Carthage team ranked No. 1 in the state in 4A and cost a 9-1 CHS team a playoff berth despite finishing the regular season ranked No. 6. Kilgore and Henderson went to the playoffs on a three-way tiebreaker over Carthage.
• 1993-- Carthage 33, Kilgore 6
  • 4A district game
• 1994-- Carthage 35, Kilgore 7
  • 4A district game
• 1995-- Kilgore 21, Carthage 7
  • 4A district game; longtime Kilgore coach Mike Vallery's first game vs. Carthage.
• 1996-- Kilgore 21, Carthage 20
  • 4A district game; Kilgore finished 10-2-1. Carthage finished 8-4.
• 1997-- Kilgore 24, Carthage 21
  • 4A district game; Kilgore finished 9-3.
• 1998-- Kilgore 13, Carthage 12
  • 4A district game; Kilgore finished 9-3. Carthage finished 8-4.
• 1999-- Kilgore 64, Carthage 35
  • 4A district game; Sleepy Reynolds' final game vs. Kilgore. He finished with an 11-15 record vs. KHS.
• 2000-- Kilgore 35, Carthage 33
  • 4A district game
• 2001-- Kilgore 34, Carthage 21
  • 4A district game
• 2002-- Kilgore 24, Carthage 0
  • Non-district game; Carthage's first year in 3A since 1979.
• 2003-- Kilgore 21, Carthage 13
  • Non-district game; Kilgore finished 12-2 with a regional final appearance.
• 2008-- Kilgore 33, Carthage 21
  • Season opener; Kilgore finished 9-3. Carthage finished 14-2 with a 3A D-II state championship.
• 2009-- Carthage 29, Kilgore 17
  • Season opener; Mike Vallery's final game vs. Carthage. He finished with a 10-1 record vs. CHS. Carthage went 16-0 with a 3A D-II state championship.

All-Time State Championship Appearances

• Carthage -- 5
  • 1991 Class 4A -- A&M Consolidated 35, Carthage 16
  • 2008 Class 3A Division II -- Carthage 49, Celina 37
  • 2009 Class 3A Division II -- Carthage 13, Graham 12
  • 2010 Class 3A Division II -- Carthage 47, Coldspring-Oakhurst 22
  • 2013 Class 3A Division I -- vs. Kilgore, 12 p.m. Friday, AT&T Stadium
• Kilgore -- 2
  • 2004 Class 4A Division II -- Kilgore 33, Dallas Lincoln 27 (OT)
  • 2013 Class 3A Division I -- vs. Carthage, 12 p.m. Friday, AT&T Stadium