The DeJean Trophy Experience
Event Strategy
The Next Chapter in Three Decades of Iowa High School Football
The idea was simple: promote Iowa high school football. That’s been the idea for more than 25 years. So when it came time to build a brand-new statewide award from scratch, the Cooper DeJean Trophy, it wasn’t just another event strategy project for us. It was the next chapter of a story the Bingham brothers started on Friday nights in Pleasantville.
Where It Started: Friday Nights in Pleasantville
Like most Iowa towns, Pleasantville was held together by football. That passion lit the content flame in 2000 with Friday Night Blitz on ABC 5, an anchor program that’s still on the air today. In the Blitz’s first two years, Brandon Bingham was actually featured on it, making plays.
Next came a commitment to cover every semifinal and championship game in the UNI-Dome. In 2001, David Bingham asked his brother to help him chase the idea. Brandon’s dream of playing in the Dome was over, but he showed up anyway. Since then, they’ve shot hundreds of games together, including eight years of Blitz Extra, an NFL Films–style program (watch Pleasantville vs. Carlisle). Their friend Bob Selby gave them a voice, and schools and coaches trusted them with the kind of access that led to groundbreaking coverage and insight.
Along the way came a documentary honoring their friend Coach Ed Thomas and his 2008 season. It’s still one of the most meaningful pieces of content we’ve ever created.
Coach Ed Thomas and the 2008 Season
From Bing Bang to Dome Dynasty
In 2014, Brandon launched Bing Bang and never looked back, while still showing up for high school football whenever David asked. With Bing Bang came a new branch of coverage: longtime friend Jesse Landolt partnered up, and Dome Dynasty kicked off.
The documentaries followed:
- Valley vs. Dowling: The Battle of West Des Moines
- Pella Dutch
- Ankeny: The Great Divide
- Harlan: The Only Play Is the Next Play
- Van Meter: How About Them Dogs
- The Unknown Journey (2020)
- Southeast Polk: Day by Day
- North Polk: Not Done Yet
Dome Dynasty’s mission matched the original one: champion every high school football program and build a partnership with the Iowa Football Coaches Association.
When David joined Brandon at Bing Bang in 2023, the next step was blending that original passion for high school football with Bing Bang’s growth. Beyond highlighting coaches and programs, we wanted to honor individual players year-round and keep their hard work and dedication in the spotlight.
The Name on the Trophy
From that came the Cooper DeJean Trophy, a tribute to the best players in Iowa. Iowa football coaches select one captain from each of the state’s seven classes, IFCA members vote, and the player with the most votes, based on passion, character, and performance, takes home the trophy.
And no name fit it better than Cooper DeJean: a small-town kid from Odebolt who went from back-to-back state titles at OABCIG to winning a Super Bowl, proof that hard work pays off no matter where you come from.
Building the Playbook for Event Strategy
Vision and ideas are the easy part. Execution is where an event thrives or falters, so we built the whole event strategy around this story.
Positioning came first: figuring out who had to be in that room for the award to mean anything, and what would make people who’d never heard of this trophy care enough to show up. Identity came next, down to designing the physical trophy itself, so the event had a direction from day one. Then a promotion engine built to reach every corner of the state, because a statewide award has to belong to all of Iowa, not just the big cities. A sales funnel turned that attention into tables and tickets. A run of show made sure all seven captains felt like part of the story, not a warm-up act before the one announcement everyone came for. And day-of production was tight enough that none of it showed.
The result is a system that can keep going strong, so this brand-new award feels like it’s been part of Iowa football all along.
The Night Cooper DeJean Showed Up
In April 2026, small-town legend Cooper DeJean showed up, and all seven captains came together at The Clubhouse at Talons in Ankeny. Coop took center stage and interviewed each captain himself, a moment none of them will ever forget, while a livestream let fans across the country watch along (watch the DeJean Trophy Experience).
Thanks to the partnership of Dome Dynasty and Bing Bang, Iowa high school football got a first-class, unforgettable night of celebration.
high school football
documentaries
from every class
across the country
The First-Ever Winner
The inaugural award went to Caden Klein of Newton (Class 4A), who will always be the first-ever winner of the Cooper DeJean Trophy.
Caden Klein of Newton with the first Cooper DeJean Trophy.
Cooper’s Corner: Class 4A Caden Klein, Newton
What We Learned on the Field
Vision and ideas are always discussed. We are most proud of our ability to execute on them. Those are core values we learned on the football field. That’s why we continue to promote the game: we believe in its bedrock of schools, communities, and people of the great state of Iowa.David BinghamBing Bang
Let’s Build Yours
Want an event that does this for your brand? We conceive it, we promote it, we run it. We turn your idea into a reality. So whether you’re in sports, hospitality, or something that has nothing to do with either, let’s hear your big ideas. The bigger, the better.
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