Iowa High School Football Team Hires New Head Coach

An Iowa high school football team has a new head coach for the upcoming 2026 season on the gridiron.

Shenandoah Community School District announced the hiring of Drew Buckholdt to lead the Shenandoah High School football program. The hiring is pending school board approval, which will take place on Monday, May 11.

“Pending school board approval, Drew Buckholdt will be the next Shenandoah Mustang football coach!” the Shenandoah Community School District’s official Facebook page posted on Friday. Welcome to Shenandoah!”

New Shenandoah Head Football Coach Replaces Veteran Skip Eckhardt On The Sidelines

Buckholdt replaces Skip Eckhardt, who took the same position at Nodaway Valley. He played football at Waldorf College.

For the past three seasons, Buckholdt has been the head football coach at Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton High School, leading his alma mater. During that time, the Spartans reached the Iowa High School Athletic Association State Football Championship playoffs each year.

Exira-EHK went 4-5 last year, winning three games in 2024 and putting together a 6-4 record in Buckholdt’s first season. That marks the most wins for the program over a three-year stretch since winning 18 games between 2017-2019.

Drew Buckholdt Led Exira-EHK To Multiple Playoff Appearances

Under Buckholdt, the Spartans featured a strong rushing attack, racking up almost 2,300 yards on the ground with 41 rushing touchdowns. They threw for 715 yards as a team last year.

Under Eckhardt, Shenandoah reached the Iowa High School Athletic Association State Football Championship playoffs the past two seasons. The Mustangs went 3-6 last fall, matching their record from both the 2024 and 2023 seasons.

Shenandoah’s last winning record came in 2015 when they finished the year 8-2 overall.

Shenandoah Set To Return Starting Quarterback Joe O'Rourke, Several Other Key Players

The Mustangs are set to return multi-year starting quarterback Joe O’Rourke, as O’Rourke threw for 827 yards and six touchdowns as a junior, adding another 337 yards rushing and six touchdowns.

O’Rourke also had a big sophomore season, completing over 59 percent of his passes for 1,516 yards with 15 touchdowns. He added another 266 yards rushing and seven TDs that year.

Gabe Buttry is also slated to return after rushing for a team-high 385 yards as a sophomore, matching O’Rourke with six rushing touchdowns. Buttry is the leading returning receiver, as he hauled in seven passes for 87 yards.

Key defensive players such as Buttry, Carter Sells, Hayden Roush, Lulus Major, Quinten Gough and Bowen Burdorf are also anticipated to be back in the fold.

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