Newell-Fonda Legend Jim Calkins Inducted Into IHSAA Basketball Hall of Fame

Jim Calkins stood at the center of Newell-Fonda basketball history long before last Friday. His induction into the IHSAA Basketball Hall of Fame on March 13, introduced at halftime of the Class 1A championship game at Casey's Center in Des Moines, made it official.

Calkins was the floor general of the Mustangs' 1991 Class 1A state championship team and earned First Team All-State honors as a guard. The numbers behind that recognition remain striking more than three decades later: 2,034 career points, an average of over 20 points per game across all four varsity seasons, and 314 made 3-pointers that still rank fifth on Iowa's all-time career list. As a senior, he averaged 27 points per game.

His 1991 Mustangs did not ease their way to a title. Newell-Fonda opened state tournament play with an 84-67 win over Lynnville-Sully, beat Bellevue 80-70 in the semifinals, then closed out the championship with a 76-55 triumph over IKM, Manilla.

The road to that title was paved with near-misses. In 1989, the final year before Fonda High School merged with Newell, the Fonda Flyers pushed Palmer to double overtime in a game that would have snapped Palmer's 97-game winning streak. After the merger created Newell-Fonda and the Mustangs moved up from Class A to Class 1A, Wall Lake View Auburn eliminated them in 1990. The 1991 championship was the culmination of a program that, according to the IHSAA, improved every season from 1988 through 1991.

Basketball was not Calkins' only arena. He was a four-year letterwinner in baseball and golf, and his senior spring included winning a team golf title and finishing as the individual runner-up at the state golf tournament.

His high school coach, Paul Loos, did not hesitate when asked about the honor. "I'm happy for Jim and his recognition as being one of the best," Loos said. "Well-deserved honor. We've had many fantastic players representing Newell-Fonda." Loos, a Creston native, also served as an assistant coach for Dick Jungers during Newell-Fonda's Class 1A girls state championship.

After Newell-Fonda, Calkins played three seasons of basketball at Buena Vista under coach Dave Gunther before beginning a 25-year teaching and coaching career at Iowa high schools. The IHSAA's official bio notes he guided two Creston teams to the state tournament during that tenure. He now lives in his hometown of Fonda and works at Loring Hospital in Sac City.

Calkins was introduced as part of the IHSAA's 2026 class, which includes seven total honorees across the Basketball Hall of Fame and Officials Hall of Fame. All were nominated through their schools, recommended by Hall of Fame selection committees, and approved by the Board of Control.