Merged Iowa High School Football Program Has New Head Coach

An Iowa high school football program that will be shared between two schools has named a new head coach.

Thayne McElhinney has been named the new head football coach at the shared program between Highland High School and Lone Tree High School.

“He has a passion for the sport, a passion for the kids,” said Spencer Lueders, superintendent of schools (thanks to the Kalona News for the quotes). “I’m really excited for him.”

Highland, Lone Tree Announced Shared Program Starting In 2026

Earlier this year, it was announced that Highland and Lone Tree would merge in the fall to form a shared Iowa high school football program. They will compete in Class A, which is 11-player football in Iowa under the Highland-Lone Tree name.

For the team, all varsity home games will be held at Highland while junior high games will take place in Lone Tree. Due to being forced to cancel games during the 2025 season, the shared team will have just two hoe games in 2026.

McElhinney is currently a teacher in the Lone Tree school district. In addition to his new role as head coach after serving as an assistant football coach at Lone Tree last year, McElhinney will be a physical education teacher at Highland.

Team Will Compete In 11-Player Football In Iowa High School Sports

Previously, Highland competed in 11-player football while Lone Tree competed at the eight-player level. Due to the combined enrollment of the new program, they will not be eligible for the Iowa High School Athletic Association State Football Playoffs in 2026.

Highland went 0-8 in 2025 after finishing 4-4 the season before. They had back-to-back winning seasons in 2018 and 2019. Underclassmen such as Aiden Yoder, Caleb Wheeler, Garrett Beeson, Tyler Pierson and Jacob Schneider are all scheduled to return.

As for Lone Tree, they did not compete in 2025 after going 2-6 in 2024 and 6-3 in 2023.

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