National Guard FLW College Fishing is headed to Lake Kinkaid Oct. 6-8 for the Central Division Regional Championship which is being hosted by Southern Illinois University (SIU). Twenty college teams will be competing for a top award of $50,000 to be split between the school and bass fishing club; $37,500 for bass club, which includes $12,500 in cash as well as a Ranger 177TR with a 90 horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard wrapped in school colors and $12,500 for their school.
” Kinkaid should fish pretty well,” said Walmart FLW Tour pro Chad Morgenthaler of Coulterville, Ill. “We’ve had some cooler weather this year, and it’s normally all about the milfoil. Fish really relate to it this time of year, so they should be moving into shallow grasses and starting their feeding frenzy.
“There will be two dominant baits this time of year, especially if the fish are moving shallow,” Morgenthaler added. “A frog and a jig or soft, plastic bait will both be successful. I would say anything over 12 pounds per day will do well, but I think it will take 16 to 18 pounds per day to win the tournament.”
Anglers will take off from the Kinkaid Lake Marina located at 2063 Marina Road in Murphysboro, Ill., at 7 a.m. each morning. All weigh-ins will be held at the SIU Arena located at 1400 Arena Drive in Carbondale. Thursday and Friday weigh-ins will begin at 4 p.m., and Saturday’s final weigh-in will be held at 5 p.m., or upon the completion of the SIU vs. North Dakota State football game. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.
Schools competing in the Central Regional tournament, which is hosted by Southern Illinois University, include:
- Eastern Kentucky – Kyle Raymer, Brandenburg, Ky., and John Smith, London, Ky.
- Eastern Kentucky – Tyler Moberly, Berea, Ky., and Jonas Ertel, London, Ky.
- Indiana University – Dustin Vaal, Bloomington, Ind., and Steven Bressler, Fremont, Ind.
- Iowa State University – Travis Graves, Ames, Iowa, and Branden Bowden, Ames, Iowa
- Kansas State University – Ryan Patterson, Goddard, Kan., and Brandon Patterson, Goddard, Kan.
- Kansas State University – Andrew Farmer, Manhattan, Kan., Tom Hobson, Leawood, Kan.
- MidAmerica Nazarene University – Brandon Owen, Lenexa, Kan., and Jacob Johnson, Lenexa, Kan.
- Northwestern University – Jimmy Morrow, Arlington Heights, Ill., and Matthew Kestufskie, Evanston, Ill.
- Purdue University – Ryan Spicer, Arcola, Ind., and Chris Kaiser, Carmel, Ind.
- Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville – Brad Lemasters, Maryville, Ill., and Justin Skinner, Taylorville, Ill.
- University of Arkansas, Little Rock – Trent Gephardt, Benton, Ark., and Carter Norman, Benton, Ark.
- University of Iowa – James Steffen, Argyle, Iowa, and Brandon Madison, Iowa City, Iowa
- University of Missouri – Scott Dooley, Columbia, Mo., and Duron Netsell, Columbia, Mo.
- University of Missouri – Taylor Knight, Columbia, Mo., and Champ Caldwell, Perry, Mo.
- University of North Dakota – Kyle Harren, Inver Grove Heights, Minn., and Pat Davis, Eagan, Minn.
- University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point – Ted Johnson, Waupaca, Wis., and Jody Derks, Waupaca, Wis.
- University of Wisconsin, Whitewater – Jordan Truttschel, Kiel, Wis., and Tyler Netzer, Lake Mills, Wis.
- University of Wisconsin, Whitewater – Brooks Gullixon, Iola, Wis., and Bradley Taylor, Wausaukee, Wis.
- Winona State University – Zac Cassill, Fairfax, Iowa, and Cade Laufenberg, Stoddard, Wis.
- Western Kentucky University – Andy Southard, Hanson, Ky., and Cody Napier, Beech Creek, Ky.
The top five teams from each regional tournament advance to the national championship where the first-place team wins an award of $100,000; $25,000 for their school and $50,000 cash and a Ranger 177TR bass boat with a 90 horsepower Evinrude or Mercury outboard wrapped in school colors for their fishing club.
SIU will be hosting the College Fishing Festival throughout the three day tournament. Students and fishing fans alike will be treated to the National Guard Warrior Challenge, a Ranger Boat simulator, tailgate games, a sports zone along with contests for cash and several prize give-aways. The festival will take place at the SIU Arena from 2 – 4 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Saturday.
College Fishing is free to enter and FLW Outdoors provides boats and drivers for each competing team along with travel allowances. All participants must be registered, full-time undergraduate students at a four-year college or university and members of a fishing club recognized by their college or university.
Coverage of the Central Regional Championship will be broadcast in high-definition (HD) on VERSUS. “FLW Outdoors,” will air Nov. 20 from 1 – 2 p.m. ET. “FLW Outdoors,” hosted by Jason Harper, is broadcast to approximately 500 million households worldwide.
ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS
FLW Outdoors is the best in fishing, on and off the water. Anglers worldwide can compete for millions over the course of 191 tournaments in 2011. FLW Outdoors has taken fishing mainstream with the world’s richest fantasy sports game, FLW Fantasy Fishing presented by Straight Talk, where competitors can play for free as well as sign up for Player’s Advantage to gain an edge.By: Julie Huber,
