For the first time in a decade, Mount Vernon will be looking for a head football coach.
Lance Pedersen was announced Monday as the next football coach at Clear Creek-Amana, pending school board approval.
“One of my goals when I come into a program is to make sure I leave a place better than I found it, and I think we were successful with that at Mount Vernon,” Pedersen said. “And I look forward to doing it at my third stop, Clear Creek-Amana.”
Pedersen was 78-30 over 10 seasons at Mount Vernon, and qualified for the playoffs seven times, including a pair of runner-up finishes (2015, 2022).
In the six seasons before Pedersen came to Mount Vernon, the Mustangs were 17-38, and made the playoffs once (2012).
Pedersen, 51, was hired from Wilton, and has a 149-61 record overall over 20 seasons. He was the Class 3A Coach of the Year in 2022.
The move was mainly personal for Pedersen, whose children attend Iowa Valley. He has been commuting to Mount Vernon from Marengo for the past two years. He also said CC-A can offer some things that Mount Veron does not.
“Without the financial support of the Mount Vernon parents and community, we could have never made this a championship-level program,” Pedersen said.
He takes over a CC-A football program that competes in Class 4A and is part of a school district that is one of the fastest-growing in the state.
Pedersen replaces Matt Haddy, whose contract was not renewed after back-to-back 3-6 seasons. Haddy has since been hired as the coach at Cascade. (Haddy is also a former defensive coordinator at Mount Vernon, under Pedersen.)
The Clippers qualified for the playoffs for the first time in school history in 2008, and have gone six more times since. But the program has never been to the UNI-Dome and it doesn’t have a history of winning football.
But while Tiffin used to be a small-town community 30 years ago, the area has been booming lately. It could become a 5A program in the next decade.
“I’m excited for the opportunity we have at Clear Creek-Amana,” Pedersen said. “They have outstanding facilities and they are hungry to be outstanding in the game of football.
“I look forward to putting together a championship mindset and a championship coaching staff to lead the program to the next level.”
Pedersen leaves behind a deep staff of assistants with ties to the community – Preston Pedersen, Jason Nosek, Dan Ketchum, Ben Knake, Matt Appleton, Brad Meester, Lance Schoff, Eric Krob, Colton Clark, Brandon Glaza, Jeremy Elliott and Brent Brase.
“I assembled the greatest coaching staff in the state of Iowa, at any level,” Pedersen said. “Not only were they quality coaches, they were quality men who each day made a positive impact on every kid they coached.”
How many assistants remain, or if any throw their hat in the ring to be the next head coach, is up in the air.
The hardest part for Pedersen is saying goodbye to another talented group of athletes that may contend for a 3A title in the fall.
“I hope that over the past 10 years that I was able to make a small positive impact on the lives of all the players that have played for me,” Pedersen said. “I love each and every one of them, and I hope I can always remain in contact with all of them.
“I can’t wait to see how much success they have in their lives.”