Battle Tough Conditions on Day One
Nearly 300 collegiate anglers idled out of the Paris Landing Marina at 7:00am this morning in search of the behemoth bass of Kentucky Lake to bring back to weigh-in. As the first Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series event of the season, anglers had high hopes of catching big bass despite the brutal rain and fog conditions starting off the first morning of the Cabela’s Collegiate Big Bass Bash Presented by Berkley.
Not much time passed between the original take-off period and the first few anglers trickling back in to weigh in an effort to gain a head start in the competition and earn a coveted top ten spot in the first hourly weigh-in, presented by Gill Rainwear; however, it wasn’t until the second weigh-in session, presented by Ranger Boats, that the big fish started showing up.
Tusculum College student, Corban Rood, opened up the second weigh-in session with a bass that became the Day One leader, hitting the scales at 8.58 lbs – a bass that is also the Tennessee native’s personal best.
"We ran about forty minutes south, close to the river," said Rood. "We wanted to throw big bass baits for this style of tournament, so our main patterns were shallow crankin’ and flippin’ jigs."
Though the conditions were less than desirable for the first day of competition, Rood was able to adapt to the conditions thanks to the time he was able to put in on the lake during his practice days.
"The weather during our practice time was similar to the conditions today. I expected the rain and cloud cover and planned for it the best I could," Rood said.
The single fish won Rood $300 in Ranger Boats Wear, a pair of Costa Sunglasses, and a $200 Gift Card to Cabela’s for the Session 2 weigh-in, along with an additional $1,000 Gift Card to Cabela’s for the overall Day One Big Bass. Not bad for Rood’s first ever Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series event, right?
Rood looks to bring in more bass to the scales tomorrow with hopes of some sunshine and a breeze to help the bite. Follow the live weigh-in to see what the Tusculum Pioneer can bring to the scales on Day Two!
Carris In Second
In second place overall, with a 7.78 lbs largemouth bass sits another Tennessee native and Tennessee Tech angler, Sam Carris.
"Our team was able to find some good schools of fish during practice," Carris said. "We have all been really excited to get after them this weekend."
Carris was able to catch a few during the Day One competition, and was able to stick the seven pound giant which gave him the win during the third weigh-in session, sponsored by HydroWave, winning
the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagle a brand new HydroWave H2 and a $200 Cabela’s Gift Card.
"My main lures today were a half ounce football jig and a SPRO McStick Jerkbait," said Carris. "I was throwing these on an underwater break where there were a lot of fish on top feeding on baitfish, with the bigger ones hanging around the bottom of the break."
Carris is currently the highest finishing competitor signed up for multiple contingency programs as well. The Ranger Cup University, Costa Sunglasses, ACA Contingency Program, and Yamaha Contingency Program will all pay their dividends assuming Carris’ weight can hold through another day of competition. If his weight holds, Carris could bring home a possible $2,750 for his qualifying contingencies.
Corbishley Takes Third
East Carolina University angler, Mike Corbishley stands in third place with a 7.53 lbs Kentucky Lake Largemouth.
Corbishley stated that he was quite frustrated up until he caught the "that big one." He and the other East Carolina competitor fishing with Corbishley caught roughly twenty-five fish throughout the day, with only six keepers to show for their work.
"I knew with the slick calm water the fishing would not be as good, but it turned out quite well," Corbishley stated. "We just had to slow down and grind it out."
Corbishley, the Raleigh, North Carolina native, was very proud of his day of competition.
"We fished extremely clean throughout the day and I am extremely excited with how the day turned out," said Corbishley.
Corbishley ended the day taking home a Garmin 551 with DownVu along with a $200 Cabela’s Gift Card for winning Session 4, presented by Garmin.
The remaining Day One Top Ten of the Cabela’s Collegiate Big Bass Bash Presented by Berkley consist of the following anglers and weights:
4. University of Wisconsin, Steven’s Point –
Justin Lundborg – 6.77lbs
5. Columbia State Community College –
Ben Bates – 6.60lbs
6. University of North Alabama –
Ryan Darracott – 6.50lbs
7. Kansas State University –
Graham Howard – 6.48lbs
8. University of Alabama Birmingham –
Wesley Minor – 6.26lbs
9. University of Louisiana Monroe –
Slade Daniel -6.23lbs
10. University of Evansville –
Lee Knies – 5.91lbs
To get a real time view of each of the weigh in sessions, visit the Live Weigh In on the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series website.
Also, follow us on Facebook throughout the day for live updates and pictures from the water!
About the ACA
The Association of Collegiate Anglers, a division of CarecoTV and in association with the The Bass Federation, is a sanctioning body developed to facilitate growth, development, and structure within competitive collegiate bass fishing. The ACA provides support to dozens of school operated regional events nationwide and owns and operates the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, the largest participatory collegiate tournament circuit in the country. With dedicated collegiate fishing programming on several television networks, three nationally televised collegiate bass fishing events, and thousands of members, the ACA is the leader in competitive collegiate bass fishing. For more information on the ACA, or the Cabela’s Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, visit www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com.
