Messenger photo by Britt Kudla: Fort Dodge's Dreshaun Ross has his hand raised after winning a fourth consecutive state wrestling championship.

Success seems like a foregone conclusion for a lot of local athletes and programs these days, but only because they’ve made it look so seamless at such a steady pace for years now.

In the last two weeks alone, we’ve witnessed Fort Dodge superstar Dreshaun Ross fulfill what always appeared to be his destiny as arguably the most dominant wrestler in Iowa high school history; the St. Edmond boys basketball squad clinch consecutive state tournament berths for the first time in over a decade; former Dodgers Jalen Adams and Tory Bennett star on the high-end Division I softball stage at Arizona and Iowa, respectively; and Audi Crooks continue to run rampant over Big 12 competition at Iowa State.

That’s not even mentioning the Iowa Central men and their first regional basketball title since 2012; the Southeast Valley boys and their undefeated run through the Twin Lakes Conference; Drake Ayala as a two-time defending national runner-up for the Iowa wrestling team; the Bishop Garrigan girls and boys as co-state tournament qualifiers; Mariah Myers starting as a true freshman for the Iowa softball squad; the Newell-Fonda girls at state for the ninth straight year; Hunter Horn and LJ Maehl becoming the all-time leading scorers for the St. Edmond boys and Fort Dodge girls, respectively; Adolph Kochendorfer of St. Edmond and Newell-Fonda’s Dick Jungers being named Iowa’s only two Wooden Legacy Award winners for 2026; and Bobby Thompson retiring after a first-ballot Hall of Fame coaching career with the Dodger wrestling program.

The pace of these storylines can feel overwhelming, but we’re not complaining at all. This is the kind of “problem” most sports departments only dream about — especially given we aren’t exactly a large metropolitan area.

Thankfully and fortunately for us, this isn’t just about shining the spotlight on athletic accomplishments. In our world, that would be enough to fulfill our professional obligations. We’ve built relationships with so many of these kids and coaches, though, and their personalities don’t just match what they’ve achieved on the court or the mat — they’ve soared beyond.

Their stories are of course worth telling from an athletic standpoint. The class and character they’ve shown as people gives our content depth and meaning way beyond the headlines. We are lucky to be in this position, and so are you if you’re following along.

KINDRED SPIRITS: Two cowboys — one literal, another figurative — rode away together at the state wrestling tournament, as Dreshaun Ross and Bobby Thompson had the storybook ending to their respective Fort Dodge careers.

Ross, who is headed to Stillwater for his next chapter at Oklahoma State, shredded the heavyweight field on his way to a fourth title in Class 3A. The Dodger became just the 34th overall four-timer in Iowa high school history, and only the seventh to do so in its largest class — joining fellow FDSH alum Brody Teske on a very exclusive list.

If you want to argue Ross is the best high school wrestler this state has ever produced, it would be met with very little resistance anymore. Ross became appointment viewing for fans from all walks of life. He’s a legitimate, bonafide superstar at a level we’ve never really seen here before. He fulfilled the promise, the potential and the expectations — and then some.

Ross was Thompson’s 19th and final state champ — all coming from nine different Dodger wrestlers since 2015. Thompson, a former FDSH standout himself, saw his program become a modern-day powerhouse in his final 11 seasons. Fort Dodge secured seven Top-3 trophies as a team during that stretch — the same number the school had experienced from 1976-2014.

As part of his wall-to-wall coverage, Chris Johnson did an exceptional job of capturing the bigger picture Thompson always preached, though. The success was dizzying, but the theme remained the same from Sam Cook to Triston Lara and Teske, from Drew Bennett to Carson Taylor and Drake Ayala, or from Koy Davidson to Ross and his brother, Damarion. Dodger wrestling is family, where history and community and trips and memories together reaches every corner of the heart, soul and spirit. The experiences together always counted in lasting ways even individual championships couldn’t match.

That’s what Dreshaun Ross will take with him as he leaves Fort Dodge — something he’ll always be able to revisit, even if it’s not in a physical sense. A place that gives him personal peace of mind. A forever home.

Thompson taught that. Thompson prioritized that. The hope is that the next coach embraces the same mentality, because it’s what still makes Dodger wrestling real and authentic in a world that drifts further away from both with each passing day.

Eric Pratt is Sports Editor at The Messenger. Contact him via email at sports@messengernews.net, or on Twitter @ByEricPratt