YETI FLW College Fishing will continue the 2018 fishing season with an event April 21 on Smith Mountain Lake. The tournament, hosted by Visit Bedford, is the first of three regular-season events for anglers in the Northern Conference, and will feature a top prize of a $2,000 club scholarship and an invitation to compete in the 2019 College Fishing National Championship.
“The lake is fishing really good and this tournament could turn out to be an absolute slam-fest,” said local BFL angler Brian Calloway of Danville, Virginia, who has three top-10 finishes at Smith Mountain Lake in FLW competition. “The timing is just about perfect. There is a full moon coming, the fish should be on beds and it is going to be wide open.
“It’s been taking at least 20 pounds to win any tournament here since November,” Calloway continued. “Some teams will probably catch them with a spinnerbait or a crankbait in muddy water, but I think the best chance of winning the tournament will be sight-fishing.”
Calloway said that he expects Yamamoto Senkos, shaky-head rigs, Texas-rigged creature baits and Big Bite Baits WarMouth to all be popular with sight-fishing anglers. He said that jigs and swimbaits should be productive on wind-blown points.
“The main pattern will be targeting the spawning fish on the stumpy, flat points on the lower to middle end of the lake,” Calloway went on to say. “The docks could definitely play a role as well. I expect that it will take at least 22 to 24 pounds to win.”
Competitors will take off from the Parkway Marina, located at 16918 Smith Mountain Lake Parkway in Huddleston, at 6:30 a.m. EDT 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 registered to compete in the Smith Mountain Lake tournament include:
California University of Pennsylvania – Colton Higgins and Jakob Bissett, both of Waynesburg, Pa.
California University of Pennsylvania – Nick Fulks, Canonsburg, Pa., and David Blaker, Rices Landing, Pa.
Christopher Newport University – Thomas Carter, Sandston, Va., and Willson Baxley, Staunton, Va.
Clarkson University – Benjamin Seaman, Colchester, Vt., and Tyler Robinson, Madrid, N.Y.
Franklin & Marshall College – Collin Martin, Sykesville, Md., and Nicholas Brown, Manheim, Pa.
James Madison University – Blake Miles, Chesterfield, Va., and Cooper Casillas, Ashburn, Va.
James Madison University – Daniel Jenkins, Midlothian, Va., and Peter Chang, Harrisonburg, Va.
Kent State University – Eric Lamb, Amherst, Ohio, and Chandler Hildebrand, Solon, Ohio
Kent State University – Andrew George, Canton, Ohio, and Riley Minerd, Rocky River, Ohio
Kent State University – Tanner Ward, Coshocton, Ohio, and Jacob Klicman, Deerfield, Ohio
Lake Superior State University – Hunter Scharphorn, Grand Haven, Mich., and Taylor Wright, Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.
Liberty University – Caleb Unger, Dry Fork, Va., and Alex Williamson, Gorham, Maine
Liberty University – Preston Kulakowski, Manassas, Va., and Jackson Monk, Fuquay Varina, N.C.
Mansfield University – Logan Murray, Easton, Pa., and Christopher Tanczos, Mansfield, Pa.
Mansfield University – Nicholas Hoffman, Dallastown, Pa., and James Grassi, Saxonburg, Pa.
Mansfield University – Lock Holmes, Fairport, N.Y., and Stephen Lowther, New Florence, Pa.
Marshall University – Evan Haley, Scott Depot, W.Va., and Chase Arkell, Winfield, W.Va.
Marshall University – Kevin Sansom, Wayne, W.Va., and Jacob Lingenfelter, Salt Rock, W.Va.
Ohio State University – Gardon Wycoff, Delaware, Ohio, and Patrick Henry, Stanhope, N.J.
Ohio State University – Nathan Durbin, Columbus, Ohio, and Romolo Rabasi, Newbury, Ohio
Pennsylvania College of Technology – Chad Burkholder, Palmyra, Pa., and Luke Thomas, Forksville, Pa.
Pennsylvania State University – Cam Young, Bloomsburg, Pa., and Caleb Meighen, Dubois, Pa.
Pennsylvania State University – Derek Horner and Matthew Huggler, both of State College, Pa.
Pennsylvania State University – Stephen Jesso, Plymouth, Pa., and Ryan Fox, Thornhurst, Pa.
Pennsylvania State University – George Gendler, Mountaintop, Pa., and Nicolas Vosburg, Ulster, Pa.
Pennsylvania State University – Jonathan Dietz, Corry, Pa., and Shane Rolle, Hanover, Pa.
Radford University – Tucker Dunaway, Powhatan, Va., and Nicholas Brognano, Gum Spring, Va.
Radford University – Matthew Cooley, Chesterfield, Va., and Zack Lemaster, Bedford, Va.
Roanoke College – Alex Watts, Greensboro, N.C., and Thomas Burchard, Burlington, Va.
Shippensburg University – Zachary Borger, Brodheadsville, Pa., and Nick Bertholdt, Shrewsbury, Pa.
Slippery Rock University – Nathan Quince and Samuel Jenesky, both of Pittsburgh, Pa.
State University of New York-Buffalo – Andy Wengender, Buffalo, N.Y., and Anthony DeGregorio, Queensbury, N.Y.
State University of New York-Buffalo – Austin Keppler, Hamburg, N.Y., and John Danvir, North Tonawanda, N.Y.
State University of New York-Buffalo – Austin Ocwieja, Webster, Nev., and Daniel Peltier, North Tonawanda, N.Y.
State University of New York-Buffalo – Corey Henderson, King George, Va., and Tyler Manthey, Marietta, N.Y.
The Apprentice School – Brian Weinz and Will Ivey, both of Newport News, Va.
The Apprentice School – Hunter Atkins, Carrsville, Va., and Kitt Moger, Suffolk, Va.
The Apprentice School – Sean Coast, Virginia Beach, Va., and Nicholas White, Hampton, Va.
The Apprentice School – Zachary Blarr, Newport News, Va., and Jordan Roth, Virginia Beach, Va.
University of Pittsburgh – Henry Colberg, Pittsburgh, Pa., and Dominic Vitale, Shickshinny, Pa.
Virginia Highland Community College – Clay Winebarger and Dustin Murray, both of Abingdon, Va.
Virginia Highland Community College – Ryan Strong, Bristol, Va., and Dylan Andis, Abingdon, Va.
Virginia Tech University – Cantley Krafft, Christianburg, Va., and Perry Marvin, Peru, N.Y.
Virginia Tech University – Junior Roberts, Ringgold, Va., and Ethan Stone, Charlottesville, Va.
Virginia Tech University – Clay Ferguson, Bedford, Va., and Hunter Woodford, Huddleston, Va.
Virginia Tech University – Jacob Honaker and Jacob Thompson, both of Moneta, Va.
Virginia Tech University – Robert Odum, Fort Chiswell, Va., and Cole Bitler, Earlysville, Va.
Virginia Tech University – Robert Swope, Orange, Va., and Jacob Pegelow, Fredericksburg, Va.
Virginia Tech University – Trey Gregg, Powhatan, Va., and Jeffery Cullop, Marion, Va.
Virginia Tech University – Tyler Dixon, Abingdon, Va., and Robert Pryor, Reidsville, Va.
Wytheville Community College – Eric Hawks, Galax, Va., and Landon Siggers, Dry Fork, Va.
YETI FLW College Fishing teams compete in three 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 20 teams from the annual FLW College Fishing Open will advance to the 2019 FLW College Fishing National Championship. Additional teams will qualify for the National Championship if the field size in regular-season events exceeds 100 boats. The 2018 FLW College Fishing National Championship will take place May 30-June 1 on the Red River in Shreveport, Louisiana, and is hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission & Red River Waterway Commission.
YETI FLW 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 that is recognized by their school.
For complete details and updated information visit FLWFishing.com.
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 2018 across five tournament circuits. Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, with offices in Minneapolis, FLW and their partners conduct 286 bass-fishing tournaments annually around the world, including the United States, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa and Spain. 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: Joe Opager, Director of Public Relations
