Nebraska Defensive Coordinator’s Father Killed In Iowa Car Crash

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A long-time Iowa high school football coach has died in a one-vehicle accident in Butler County.

The Iowa State Patrol identified the victim as 69-year-old Gene Chinander of Allison. He is the father of current Nebraska defensive coordinator and former UNI assistant coach Erik Chinander.

According to a crash report, Gene Chinander was killed in a crash at the intersection of Iowa Highways 3 and 14 near Allison. The report states that Chinander failed to stop at a stop sign and slammed into a legally parked semi trailer.

Chinander died at the scene, the Iowa State Patrol said.

Chinander coached high school football for many years in Iowa. His stops included Allison-Bristow, North Butler and Mason City.

Erik Chinander, an offensive lineman at Iowa from 1998 to 2002, has served as Head Coach Scott Frost's defensive coordinator at Nebraska since 2018. He was an assistant on Mark Farley's staff at UNI, where he was coached the tight ends and receivers from 2004 to 2009.

Nebraska is scheduled to play Minnesota in Minneapolis Saturday afternoon. It wasn't immediately clear if Erik Chinander would be with the team.

State Trooper Injured In Crash

Another crash in northeast Iowa Thursday injured an Iowa State trooper.

According to Clayton County sheriff's officials, Trooper Ted Benda was assisting deputies at the time of the accident. Authorities said Benda was responding to a call for service around 11:30 PM.

The single-vehicle crash occurred on Iowa Highway 51 about six miles north of Postville.

Benda was airlifted to a hospital in La Crosse, Wis., where he was listed in critical condition Friday morning.

The accident remains under investigation.