He has very impressive coaching credentials in Track and Field, Softball and Girls Basketball, but it is his association with Track and Field that we honor Jerry Horton today. Jerry participated in all sports available at Clearfield High School before graduating in 1959 as a 10 time letter winner. After graduating from Clearfield, he headed to Northwest Missouri State University where he earned both his BA and Masters degrees.
Jerry coached girl’s track and field for a total of 37 years at 4 different schools. He started the programs at Winfield Mt. Union, Mount Ayr and Ballard of Huxley before spending his last 29 years at Pekin of Packwood. In each of his 37 years of coaching track, Jerry had at least one state qualifying event. Jerry coached track and field teams won over 150 meets that had 4 or more teams. At Pekin, his squads won 10 District titles and 18 conference titles, including the last 9 in a row. His squads produced 137 state meet qualifiers, 5 state champions and 5 state runners-up. He had teams that placed in the top 10 at the state meet on 5 different occasions. Jerry also coached Girls basketball for 27 years, winning 396 games and retiring with an impressive 66% winning percentage. His teams won 208 softball games at Pekin with a 12 season winning percentage of 70%. The impressive results put up by his teams, earned Jerry a number of individual honors:
- • IATC Regional Track Coach of the Year-6 times
- • IATC 25 years of service award
- • Iowa Girls Coaches Association 25 years of service award
- • National Girls Track Coach of the Year by the NHSACA
- • Induction into the National High School Athletic Coaches Hall of Fame and induction into the
- Iowa Girls Coaches Association Girls Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame
Athletics have been very good to Jerry, and he has spent a great deal of time giving back. He has been a Drake Relays volunteer, a High School State meet volunteer, and Junior High State meet volunteer and a guest lecturer at numerous coaching clinics around the state. Jerry and wife Karen have 2 sons. Gary and his wife Sara live in Ft. Wayne, Indiana with the Horton’s twin grandsons, Trevor and Taylor. Their son Robert lives in Fairfield. As you can see, with this impressive resume’, Jerry Horton could have selected anyone of three sports to concentrate on and lead kids to success. The kids he coached over his 37 years are lucky he didn’t do that. Jerry Horton’s leading of 3 varsity sports to a very high level, gave more high school students the opportunity to live their dreams, contribute to a successful team and be coached by a Hall of Famer.