ALBIA — Longtime head football coach and teacher Jerry Staton died on Thursday in Oskaloosa, according to an obituary published by his family. Staton was 84.
The former Ottumwa native and Ottumwa High School graduate served as the head coach for several successful area high school programs over 53 years, including leading Oskaloosa High School to a state championship in 1996. Besides coaching 29 years at Oskaloosa, Staton also coached at Pekin, Pella Christian and Albia as well as Lea College, Vinton, Clarinda and Milan, Missouri.
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Staton was inducted into the Iowa High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame for his work on and off the field. In 2012, Staton was placed on the Wall of Honor at Parsons College in Fairfield, where Staton attended graduated in 1963 attending the school to play football after a successful high school wrestling and football career at Ottumwa.
Besides coaching football, Staton served as an instructor for Physical Education, History and Geography. Staton was the first head coach in the history of the Pella Christian high school football program and led Albia to three consecutive state semifinal appearances from 2013-15.
Staton retired for good from coaching after the 2016 season at Albia. Almost a decade later, the Blue Demons still honor the legendary head coach by hosting a Dedication Night for the program in which both current and former players as well as current and former coaches present dedication letters to honor those that have made a significant impact in their lives to be read after an Albia home football game, as was the case this past September after Albia’s 44-6 win over Knoxville.
“It was really special and really humbling,” Justin Huber, Albia’s current head football coach, said in September. “I got to learn a lot from Coach Staton. It was my honor to take over the program after he stepped down. As long as I’m here, the stuff that Coach Staton brought to our program is going to continue to be involved. Dedication Night. The stuff we do with the kids the Thursday before each game.
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“There’s a lot of stuff that Coach Staton taught us [that] is still the same. The offense and defensive schemes might have changed, but the philosophy is still the same. How we do stuff. How we treat people being servant warriors is still the same. That’s not changing.”
Fittingly, Staton was honored earlier this fall as part of 2025 Dedication Night for Albia, which moving forward will be named after the long-time Iowa high school head football coach. Before letters of dedication from current Albia football players were read, dedication letters to Coach Staton by former players Dalton Folkerts, Luke Sarver and Albia coach Chad Otdoerfer shortly after the Blue Demons completed a 38-point win over the 0-3 Panthers.
“We’ve always felt like this was a special deal. We had a few people in the community that reached out and wanted to make that a night to honor Coach Staton,” Huber said. “It was just a really special night. Having Coach Staton back at the game was really special. Having some of the former players back was special. It was special to get a win for them.”
Memorial services for Staton will be held on Monday at Central United Methodist Church in Oskaloosa. Former players, coaches and managers are invited to join in a final tribute to Staton at Oskaloosa High School’s old home football field, Community Stadium, where Staton coached the Indians for a final walk across the gridiron on Monday afternoon at 1:45 p.m.
