Messenger photo by Britt Kudla: Four-time state champion Dreshaun Ross of Fort Dodge was named the 2026 Steenlage Award winner, as well as the Dave Schultz Midwest Region Wrestler of the Year.

Dreshaun Ross’ high school career is over, but the awards continue to pile up.

Recently, Fort Dodge’s four-time state champion was named the 2026 Bob Steelage Iowa High School Wrestler of the Year.

The Steelage Award is presented to the top high school senior in the state of Iowa. It’s awarded in honor of Bob Steelage, who was the first four-time state champion in Iowa high school wrestling history.

Steenlage captured titles in 1959, 1960, 1961 and 1962 for Britt High School.

Ross was also recognized as the Dave Schultz Midwest Region wrestler of the year winner, which is handed out yearly for high school excellence on and off the mat.

“He (Dreshaun) is a generational talent,” said retired FDSH coach Bobby Thompson. “I don’t know if you will ever see anyone like him again.

“And it’s not just about wrestling — he’s a great person.”

The Dave Schultz Award is presented annually to a male high school senior based equally on outstanding wrestling success, scholastic achievement and citizenship or community service. The national winner is selected from the group of state and regional winners.

The award was established in 1996 in memory of Schultz, an Olympic World champion whose career was cut short when he was murdered in January 1996. He was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished member in 1997 and as a member of the United World Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2016.

Ross, who finished his Fort Dodge career with a record of 146-2, is now headed to Oklahoma State University.

In his run to becoming the Dodgers’ second four-time state champion next to Brody Teske, Ross’s four wins lasted little time at the state tournament. He won his first two matches by identical 21-6 counts and his semifinal in 41 seconds. Ross then capped his run in the finals with a technical fall in 1:59.

“He is just an epitome of what a Dodger is,” Thompson said. “It started to sink in for me (Sunday after the finals) as far as what he just did, and that this would be the last time to be in his corner.

“It was a privilege and an honor to coach him.”

In his career at the state tournament, Ross was 16-0 with seven falls, six technical falls, a major decision and two decisions.

Ross (.9864) finisheed second behind only Teske (.994) for career win percentage. Teske lost once; Ross dropped two decisions as a freshman, to current Div. I wrestlers Cole Mirasola and McCrae Hagarty.

Mirasola is on the Penn State roster. Hagarty is a sophomore at Iowa State. Ross later avenged the setback to Hagarty during his freshman year with a 4-2, SV-1 win at the Ed Winger Classic.

The legendary Dodger won 139 straight matches, finishing with 88 falls and 31 technical falls. Ross missed a significant portion of his junior year while recovering from a shoulder injury.

Ross was also a six-time Tulsa Nationals champion as a youth, and earned the coveted Trinity Award five times. He was a Junior Nationals champion in 2022, 2023 and 2025, winning the 16U title as a 14-year-old and the 15U Greco-Roman and freestyle crowns.

Ross was first team all-state in football in 2024 and 2026 — missing his junior year with an injury — and was also first team academic all-state.

A member of the student advisory committee, Ross also volunteered at youth clubs and tournaments.

Ross is the third Dodger to win the Steenlage Award, joining Drake Ayala (2021) and Teske (2018).

Ayala also won the Dave Schultz Award in 2021.