Iowa High School Football Team Earns Prize Money In National Contest

Newton High School will receive $31,000 for weight room upgrades through T-Mobile contest

Newton High School in Iowa was a finalist for the T-Mobile "Friday Night 5G Lights" contest, receiving over $31,000 for weight room upgrades. / Newton Football/X

An Iowa high school has earned over $30,000 for upgrades to its weight room through a contest sponsored by T-Mobile.

Newton High School was a finalist for the $1 million prize given to the winner of the T-Mobile “Friday Night 5G Lights” contest that has been ongoing over the fall. While the school did not win the ultimate award, they did finish in the Top 10 to secure a portion of the prize.

By placing eighth overall in the contest, which focused on high school football and community spirit, Newton will have $31,000 to use towards upgrades to its weight room. The nationwide competition was won by Dierks High School out of Arkansas.

A total of 25 high schools around the United States were named finalists for the $1 million stadium remodel. Over 2,000 schools entered the contest, with 25 winning at least $25,000 and 450 scoring at least $5,000 during the contest.

Iowa High School Has Received Three Awards During Contest

Previously, Newton earned prizes of $1,000, $5,000 and $25,000, giving them the final total of $31,000 to use towards improvements for current and future high school athletes to take advantage of.

Along with the $31,000, a $25,000 grant will be awarded to Newton, who received over 271,000 votes during the event. They were the only Iowa high school to make the final 25 finalists list from T-Mobile.

Over eight million votes were cast, with Dierks receiving nearly two million to place first. States with other schools in the final 25 included Texas, Louisiana, Oregon, Maine, Idaho, Minnesota, Washington, Ohio, Florida, Missouri, Illinois, New Hampshire, California, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Virginia, Nebraska, North Carolina, Indiana, Wisconsin and Colorado.

Newton has Faced Financial Hardship Over the Year

On the school page posted by T-Mobile, it notes that Newton High School “has faced financial hardship over the years.” The school, though, has seen a resurgence in its football program, qualifying for the postseason three consecutive years.

The Cardinals are one of the top teams in Class 4A this fall, as they will host former conference rival Fort Dodge in the opening round of the 4A Iowa high school football playoffs on Friday night.

“Upgraded facilities would honor that resilience and give the Cardinals a new home to carry on their proud tradition,” the page posted about the school that is rooted in “Red Pride.”

Newton is 8-1 on the year and led by Caden Klein, Isaiah Hansen and Finn Martin on offense. Klein has thrown for 1,405 yards and 15 touchdowns, adding 13 rushing scores and another 521 yards. 

Hansen has 1,107 yards on the ground and 16 touchdowns while Martin has caugth 35 passes for 833 yards and 10 trips to the end zone. Alameen Shanto, Dawson Maki, Josh Lampe, Kyler Griffin, Colton Northcutt and Nick Milburn are the defensive leaders, as Milburn ranks near the top of the state with 97 tackles including 16 for loss.

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