John Meeks raised his hands to the crowd at Wells Fargo Arena and ran off the mat, his high school wrestling career at its pinnacle.

The Des Moines Roosevelt senior capped off a 168-0 career with his fourth state championship at the Iowa high school wrestling state tournament on Feb. 18 in Des Moines. The next stop in his wrestling career will be Iowa State.

For ISU wrestling coach Kevin Jackson, Meeks capping off his career with a state title simply means he recruited the right wrestler.

“[It means] you got the best kid,” Jackson said. “When you get a champion like John Meeks who wins four titles and goes undefeated — the only one this year and one of six in the history of Iowa wrestling — it says that he’s special.”

Meeks, the nation’s top-ranked 138-pounder, said going undefeated through his career and winning his fourth title is satisfying.

“It feels like a great accomplishment,” Meeks said. “Not many other people have done it, and I’m just one of six so I feel pretty good about it.”

After traditionally redshirting his top freshman during the first three years as the wrestling coach, Jackson said that wouldn’t always be the case as the team moves forward.

“At this point now we think we’re going to have a strong team as we move into the future,” Jackson said. “If a kid is the best guy in his weight class, we’re going to wrestle him.”

Whether or not Meeks wrestles in the Cyclones’ lineup next season will depend on several factors, Jackson said. Those factors include whether he is the best guy in the room and whether or not Jackson believes an additional year will benefit his long-term career at Iowa State.

Meeks said the decision would come down to what he can prove on the mat.

“It’s up to [Jackson]. If my performance is good, then I’ll step in,” Meeks said. “If it’s not, then it’s really his decision.”

Meeks was not the only Cyclone wrestling recruit to win a state title, as both Iowa City West’s Dakota Bauer (132) and Urbandale’s Gabe Moreno (145) capped off their high school careers on top as well.

Kyle Larson of West Des Moines Valley, who also wrestles at 132 pounds, lost to Bauer in the semifinal round of the tournament but finished third overall. 

Jackson’s 2012 class will also include the former No. 1 wrestler in the nation in Destin McCauley from Apple Valley, Minn.

With several highly touted wrestlers on the way in next fall, there is hope from both Jackson and current wrestlers that brighter days are ahead.

“The combination of my class and the class coming in together could do really special things,” said Michael Moreno, Gabe’s older brother and redshirt freshman at Iowa State. “Later on down the road — two, three years down the road — [we could be] competing for not just Big 12 titles but for national titles.”