FLW College Fishing is headed to Table Rock Lake April 9 for the first of three regular-season stops in the Central Conference. A full field of college teams will be competing for a top award of $2,000 and a berth into the 2017 College Fishing National Championship.
“Table Rock offers a lot of opportunities to catch big bass,” said Walmart FLW Tour pro James Watson, of Nixa, Missouri. “There’s a lot of color in the water so it’s going to be a great tournament for moving baits.
“The spawning flats will likely play a big role in this event,” Watson continued. “If the water clears up and the temperature continues to rise, there could be some strong sight-fishing areas in coves, especially in the James River. Also, if the water clarity is there, I see a fast-moving jerkbait doing well near bluff-ends.”
In addition to jerkbaits, Watson said that crankbaits and spinnerbaits will likely dominate the field.
“Red or brown-colored crankbaits will be a good bet,” said Watson. “Spinnerbaits in chartreuse and white varieties should catch them as well.”
Watson finished by saying that he expects the winning team to weigh in a five-bass limit nearing 18 pounds.
Anglers will take off from Port of Kimberling Marina, located at 72 Marina Way in Kimberling City, at 6:30 a.m. CST Saturday. Weigh-in will be held at the marina beginning at 2:30 p.m. Takeoff and weigh-in are free and open to the public.
Schools are allowed to register up until the morning of the tournament. Entries may be made either by phone or at CollegeFishing.com. Schools currently registered to compete in the Table Rock Lake tournament, which is hosted by the Table Rock Lake Chamber of Commerce, include:
Bellarmine University – James Kuhns, Louisville, Ky., and Joseph Allgeier, Bardstown, Ky.
Bellarmine University – Matthew Smith, Bardstown, Ky., and Kathleen Guice, Chattanooga, Tenn.
Bellarmine University – Patrick Clark and Trevor Hulsey, both of Louisville, Ky.
Bemidji State University – Thor Swanson and Mitchell Swanson, both of Blaine, Minn.
Bemidji State University – Tyler Robinson, Ham Lake, Minn., and Samuel Moore, Crystal, Minn.
Eastern Illinois University – Ian Snowden and Jacob Daily, both of Mattoon, Ill.
Eastern Kentucky University – Logan Gabbard, Richmond, Ky., and Steven Petz, Strongsville, Ohio
Eastern Kentucky University – Shaw Owens and Corey Owens, both of Barbourville, Ky.
Elizabethtown Community and Technical College – Natalie Reichmuth and Ryan Dowell, both of Brandenburg, Ky.
Iowa State University – Dylan Rague, Carroll, Iowa, and Pat Morrison, Omaha, Neb.
Iowa State University – Zac Beek, Bloomington, Minn., and Zachary Hartley, Minneapolis, Minn.
McKendree University – Austin Niggli, Highland, Ill., and Brock Wilke, Saint Rose, Ill.
McKendree University – Brad Wyss, Gardener, Ill., and Taylor Schmitt, Belknap, Ill.
McKendree University – Curtis Lilly, Saint Rose, Ill., and Brian McClanahan, Elkville, Ill.
McKendree University – Reece Ellerbusch, Belknap, Ill., and Austin Chapman, Blue Mound, Ill.
McKendree University – Shane Campbell, Summerfield, Ill., and Phillip Germagliotti, Highland, Ill.
Milwaukee School of Engineering – Nicolas Matschinegg, Chicago, Ill., and Kevin Gross, Wheeling, Ill.
Milwaukee School of Engineering – Shaylan Reardon, Oconomowoc, Wis., and Brooke Scott, Wan Dyne, Wis.
Missouri State University – Alex Macomber, Springfield, Mo., and Cody Hightower, Hartville, Mo.
Missouri State University – Brian Bueker, Higginsville, Mo., and Cody Hamacher, Jefferson, Mo.
Missouri State University – Crosley Welch, Branson, Mo., and Hayden Lee, Jefferson City, Mo.
Missouri State University – Grant Gaskill, Sullivan, Mo., and Brandon Duemmel, Jefferson City, Mo.
Missouri State University – Kyle Doherty, Chesterfield, Mo., and Nick King, Oakville, Mo.
Missouri State University – Quinton Booth and Andrew Guilliams, both of Springfield, Mo.
Moraine Valley Community College – Andrew Jensen and John Neubauer, both of Oak Lawn, Ill.
Murray State University – Chandler Christian, Owensboro, Ky., and Lance Freeman, Eddyville, Ky.
Saint Ambrose University – Cole Atkinson and Tanner Atkinson, both of Camanche, Iowa
Saint Cloud State University – Erik Quanrud, Cambridge, Minn., and Daniel Carlson, Milaca, Minn.
Saint Cloud State University – Joachim Speldrich, Paynesville, Minn., and Tyler Gromberg, Saint Cloud, Minn.
Saint Cloud State University – Seth Cupersmith, Minneapolis, Minn., and Alex Almich, Buffalo Lake, Minn.
South Dakota State University – Kaiden Karst, Pierre, S.D., and Chase Porter, Sioux Falls, S.D.
Southeast Missouri State University – Luke Brozovich, Minooka, Ill., and Reid Millburg, Glenarm, Ill.
Southern Illinois University – Blake Henry and Kyle Wagner, both of Waterloo, Ill.
Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville – Alex Mosella, Fort Myers, Fla., and Sean Clarkson, Edwardsville, Ill.
Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville – Parker Nesbit, Saint Jacob, Ill., and Colten Hunter, Brownstown, Ill.
University of Dubuque – Matt Smith, Harvard, Ill., and Alex Steffen, Cascade, Iowa
University of Kansas – Jake Smith, Benton, Kan., and Kevin Harden, Olathe, Kan.
University of Louisville – Jeffry Endly and Jacob Meadows, both of Carrollton, Ky.
University of Louisville – Joseph Faulconer, Sadieville, Ky., and Corey Skaggs, Louisville, Ky.
University of Minnesota-Duluth – Mark Shirley, Saint Cloud, Minn., and James Chapman, South Haven, Minn.
University of Nebraska-Omaha – Zach Kroeger and Ben Kroeger, both of Omaha, Neb.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point – Cody Bergerson, Black River Falls, Wis., and Reed Fredrick, Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.
University of Wisconsin-Whitewater – Jared Mataczynski, Wausau, Wis., and Steve Nebel, Whitewater, Wis.
Winona State University – Wyatt Stout, Sauk City, Wis., and Riley Diske, Winona, Minn.
FLW College Fishing teams compete in regular-season qualifying tournaments in one of five conferences – Central, Northern, Southern, Southeastern and Western. The top ten teams from each division’s three regular-season tournaments and the top 15 teams from the annual FLW College Fishing Open will advance to the 2017 FLW College Fishing National Championship.
College Fishing is free to enter. All participants must be registered, full-time students at a college, university or community college and members of a college fishing club.
About FLW
FLW is the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization, providing anglers of all skill levels the opportunity to compete for millions in prize money in 2016 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW conducts more than 235 bass-fishing tournaments annually across the United States and sanctions tournaments in Canada, China, Mexico and South Korea. FLW tournament fishing can be seen on the Emmy-nominated “FLW” television show, broadcast to more than 564 million households worldwide, while FLW Bass Fishing magazine delivers cutting-edge tips from top pros.
By: Brian Johnson, FLW
