WEBSTER CITY FOOTBALL COACH BOB HOWARD coaches during this past season with the Lynx. Howard, who coached for 17 seasons at WCHS, is retiring, the school confirmed on Wednesday. (DFJ photo by David Borer)

Bob Howard, a Hall of Fame football coach with nearly five decades of memories and accomplishments rivaled by very few in the history of Iowa, is retiring at Webster City High School — some 40 miles away from where it all began.

WCHS activities director Jess Howard confirmed Howard’s decision on Wednesday evening. Howard told his players earlier in the week that he was ending a 47-year career on the sidelines, with the last 17 coming as the leader of the Lynx.

The 70-year-old Howard turned the Webster City program into a perennial contender again. The former Madrid High standout player returned to a school not far from his old stomping grounds after winning three state championships and reaching the playoffs 16 times while at Sigourney-Keota.

Howard, who also coached at Scranton early in his career, took over the reins of the Lynx in 2007 — just as Webster City’s posteason dry spell had reached a full decade. In the next 17 seasons, Webster City reached the playoffs 14 times — including the Class 3A championship round in 2016. In the last four years alone, the Lynx went 31-11 overall and advanced to the quarterfinal round three times.

Howard’s 372 wins all-time ranks in the state’s Top-5 for a career.