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Spring Transition SECRETS – OTT DEFOE & CODY PIKE
Special Bass 365 DOUBLE HEADER LIVECAST. Ott Defoe joins the Bass 365 crew and shares his Spring transition Secrets for catching bass in late winter to early spring. PLUS MLF BIG 5 Pro Circuit ROOKIE Cody Pike joins the LIVECAST to share his story of what it took to make it to the Pro Circuit and his rookie debut in 2021.
#livecast #ottdefoe #springtransition
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Why Brandon Lester Chooses a Jig over all other Winter Lures
See the Alabama Rig near Bassmaster Elite Series pro Brandon Lester’s left hand in the photo? It’s the only one he owns. Like literally, he owns one A-Rig, and you’re looking at it.
And while he’s got plenty of proven cold water crankbaits laying there too, every lure in the universe plays second fiddle to a jig on the coldest days of winter for the easy-going Tennessee pro who is closing in on $1 Million in career earnings after just seven years as a full-time pro.
“I realize a lot of guys have come to depend on an Alabama Rig in the dead of winter, but we’re not allowed to use it in Bassmaster Opens or Elites. So there’s no reason for me to get dependent on it when I’m fishing around home at this time of year,” says the Team Toyota pro.
“And honestly, I believe with all my heart, when you’re throwing a jig at this time of year, you’re giving yourself a shot to catch the biggest fish in the lake,” he says.
Bringing the Heat with the Z Train
His recent appearance on “Zona’s Awesome Fishing Show” epitomizes this point. The air temp was 18 degrees the day they filmed on Dale Hollow Lake, water temps were 42, and dragging a football jig brought the heat on quality fish more than any other lure the two tied on.
“We could catch fish on a Ned Rig that day, and probably could have caught some on a crankbait too. But the football jig was hands-down the key to Zona and I catching all our bigger fish,” he recalls.
Biggest Bass of Lester’s Life
However, Lester’s proof of a jig’s frigid water prowess is certainly not limited to his day filming with Zona. Each New Year’s Eve, he and a good buddy make a trip to Nickajack Lake – and it was on that tradition rich trip last year that Lester believes he caught the biggest bass of his life – on a jig of course.
“I had just gotten a brand-new boat. We didn’t even have my graphs mounted yet, let alone have a scale in the boat. I caught a 7-pounder first on a jig, and then caught one that I know was over 10-pounds, which would easily make it the biggest bass of my life,” says Lester.
Callin’ bull on hibernating crawfish
While schools of shad, and specifically, the weak and dying specimens within the school, often become the focal point of the bass’ cold weather dinner menu, crawdads remain a major player too. Lester simply doesn’t buy the dormant crawdad theory. “I’ve had guys tell me crawdads are so dormant in winter that they aren’t a factor for bass. That’s absolute bull! I’ve caught way too many bass in 45-degree water with crawdad pinchers sticking out of their gullets to ever rule out a jig,” he says emphatically.
Lester’s two favorite winter jigs
The skirted jewels he leans on most are pretty simple. First, he never varies far from the colors brown or green pumpkin, and secondly, one of his winter jigs will always be a ½-ounce SpotSticker flipping jig featuring a brown living rubber skirt and a meaty 5/0 Mustad hook. This is the jig that gets pitched to thicker shoreline habitat, and he emphasizes the merits of living rubber skirts in cold water.
The other jig is a football jig. If he’s dragging it on the bottom in less than 15-feet of water, he uses a ½ ounce model. Sometimes, however, bait balls and other desirable sonar images seem to be out in the 15 to 30-foot-deep zone. In that case, when going deeper, he ties a ¾-ounce model to his 15-pound Vicious fluorocarbon. He nearly always dresses his football jig with a craw-style trailer as shown in the photo.
Bama rigs, jerkbaits, and flat-sided cranks all have their mid-winter merits, but for Brandon Lester, jigs are the true trophy chaser when water temps are in the 40s. “All I can tell you is some of the most memorable and biggest bass I’ve ever caught in my life have come in the middle of winter, and all of them bit a jig.”
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Lake Eufaula Lands 2021 Bassmaster Team Championship Event
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The last spot in the 2022 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk will be filled on historic Lake Eufaula as this Alabama fishery hosts the Bassmaster Team Championship and Classic Fish-Off Dec. 8-11, 2021.
Battling for that coveted berth in the Bassmaster Classic will be the grassroots anglers competing at the Bassmaster Team Championship. The team portion of the event will be held Dec. 8-9 and will feature anglers from across the country — 32 states in 2020. The winning duo will not only win a cash prize, but they’ll also lead the charge into the Classic Fish-Off which will take place Dec. 10-11.
The top three teams through Day 2 — six anglers in all — will have their weights zeroed and then compete individually in the Fish-Off. The competitor with the heaviest two-day total of the group will earn their spot in the Classic.
In 2020, that honor went to Jordan Wiggins, a 29-year-old Cullman, Ala., resident whose older brother Jesse notched a third-place finish in the 2019 Classic.
“What a wonderful way to end a year,” says Ann Sparks, Tourism and Main Street Executive Director for the City of Eufaula. “We are thrilled to be hosting the Bassmaster Team Championship and showing off what Lake Eufaula has to offer! Most anglers have fished our great lake, but we are excited to show off our changes and improvements to our beautiful town.”
B.A.S.S. has visited Lake Eufaula 17 times for major events, including an Elite Series tournament last year that was broadcast live to an audience of more than 2.8 million. The town itself — with a statue declaring Eufaula as the “Big Bass Capital of the World” — is known throughout the fishing industry as the hometown of legendary angler and lure designer Tom Mann. It’s the home of Mann’s Bait Company and the Johnson Outdoors location where Humminbird electronics are produced.
In addition to the Team Championship event, Lake Eufaula will also host the Bassmaster B.A.S.S. Nation Kayak Series powered by TourneyX on May 1.
The tournaments are being hosted by the Eufaula Barbour Chamber of Commerce.
2021 Bassmaster Team Championship Premier Sponsors: Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Power-Pole, Ranger Boats, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2021 Bassmaster Team Championship Supporting Sponsors: AFTCO, Garmin, Huk Performance Fishing, Mossy Oak Fishing, Rapala
2021 Bassmaster Team Championship Grassroots Sponsor: B&W Trailer Hitches
2021 Bassmaster Team Championship Local Host: Eufaula Barbour Chamber of Commerce
About B.A.S.S.
B.A.S.S., which encompasses the Bassmaster tournament leagues, events and media platforms, is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 515,000-member organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), TV show, radio show, social media programs and events. For more than 50 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.
The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens Series, TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Series, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series presented by Academy Sports + Outdoors, Bassmaster Team Championship, Bassmaster B.A.S.S. Nation Kayak Series powered by TourneyX and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk.
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Welcome to the Bass 365 Social Network
A new way to get your social media fix! You can find friends, join groups post videos and talk fishing! We are looking forward to hearing from you!
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Cody Huff – Graduating from College Fishing
After a successful season in tournament competition along with an unpredictable and challenging year off the water, Cody Huff’s reign as the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Bracket Champion has officially come to an end. Huff turned in his Bethel University wrapped rig last week and a new Toyota Tundra-Nitro Boat combo is being prepared for the 2021 college champ, Trevor McKinney.
Looking back on the year, Cody Huff has a lot to be proud of. Not only did he do an excellent job representing his school, himself, and college fishing on the biggest stages in bass fishing, he also had one of the best on-the-water performance records in the history of this program.
With anglers like Jordan Lee, Matt Lee, Andrew Upshaw, and Brett Pruett (to name a few) coming up through the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket program… that’s high praise.
The 2020 season wasn’t what Huff expected, largely due to the global COVID-19 Pandemic, but the 23-year old Bethel University student certainly made the most of a chaotic year.
After starting the year off with back-to-back victories on Toledo Bend Reservoir, Huff became the first college fishing representative to make it to Day 3 of the Bassmaster Classic since Jordan Lee. Huff had a solid 2020 Bassmaster Opens campaign and bookended his season with a second FLW Toyota Series victory on Table Rock Lake in early November.
“In a lot of ways I’d like to forget 2020 like most folks, but from a fishing standpoint I am extremely thankful,” Huff said. “From both an equipment and financial standpoint this year was a massive opportunity for me. For the first time in my fishing career I couldn’t use equipment as an excuse. From my baits and electronics, to my boat and tow vehicle, I was able to use the best of the best.”
Like most of his college fishing peers, Huff had always made due with any limitations in his equipment prior to becoming the 2020 Carhartt College Series Classic representative. He took full advantage of the opportunity this program provided, thanks to both his performance on the water and how he carried himself when not competing.
Huff finished his year by locking up sponsor support for his 2021 tournament season before purchasing a 2020 Toyota Tundra of his own so he could be eligible for Toyota Bonus Bucks in 2021 and have a tow vehicle he could depend on.
With Bass Pro Shops serving as his title sponsor Huff will compete on the Major League Fishing Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit as well as at least one Bassmaster Opens division this year, representing many of the same companies he worked with in 2020. While competing in his first season as a professional fisherman, Huff will complete a few remaining online classes to earn his diploma from Bethel University.
“It really is a dream come true,” Huff said with a smile. “I’ll be competing against guys I’ve been watching on TV since I was a little kid. I don’t think it has really hit me yet… I’m just extremely grateful for everything I learned last year. I wouldn’t be in this position without the support of Bassmaster, Carhartt, Bass Pro Shops, or Toyota.”
There’s no doubt about it, Cody Huff is a special talent with a bright future. His obvious skill for catching bass better than the competition will continue to serve him well in this sport; but his Midwestern roots, even-keeled attitude, and respectful nature put Huff at the top of our list of young anglers to watch.
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