Former Zionsville coach J.R. Howell joins Garrett Winegar at Iowa United Prep

J.R. Howell has left Zionsville to join Garrett Winegar at Iowa United Prep, adding another familiar Indiana coaching name to a program that is already building around Midwest credibility in Des Moines, Iowa. Winegar, the former Fishers coach, is expected to handle the freshman-sophomore team, and Keith Smart, the 1987 NCAA title hero from Indiana, is also on staff.

Howell resigned after six seasons at Zionsville, where he went 77-62 and finished 13-11 last season. Zionsville moved quickly to replace him, hiring former Plainfield coach Andy Weaver to take over the program. Howell’s path to the new job includes stops at Caston, Western Boone and three seasons as an assistant at Carmel before he took the Zionsville position.

Winegar’s move had already signaled how aggressive Iowa United Prep intended to be. He left Fishers after six seasons with a 132-25 record, including an 83-3 run over his final three seasons. Under Winegar, Fishers won a Class 4A state championship two years ago and reached the state finals again last season before finishing as runner-up.

The connection between Howell and Winegar goes back to April 2020, when the two met in a hospital during the pandemic and discovered they lived nearby. Their careers had already intersected on the biggest stage in Indiana high school basketball: Winegar was on the Warren Central bench and Howell was at Carmel when Warren Central beat Carmel in the 2018 Class 4A state finals.

For Indiana programs, the move is another reminder that established coaches with statewide résumés are increasingly finding opportunity outside the traditional high school track. Howell and Winegar both built their reputations in the state, both reached the peak of the IHSAA tournament trail, and both are now headed to a prep-school setting that gives them a different route to shape players and manage talent. The vacancy at Zionsville and the hire of Weaver close one chapter; the opening at Iowa United Prep keeps drawing proven Indiana coaches into a growing prep model.