Tournament Information
The performances earned the Hokie Fishing Team $16,500 and 2 spots in the FLW College Fishing National Championship in April of 2010 on Tellico Lakes outside of Knoxville. Ultimately, the winning team that outfishes 24 others will advance to the Forest Wood Cup with a multi-million dollar purse and the opportunity of a lifetime to fish against the best professionals on the water. Check out the one-hour episode that aired on Versus in early December that features the Hokies and their success at Lake Norman at the Regional event:
FLW College Northern Regional Championship Television Show
Along with winning the bass club a great deal of money, the VT teams netted another $16,500 to be donated to the schools general scholarship fun in the club's name. This brings total scholarship fund donations to close to $30,000 for the year!
Virginia Tech and Auburn were the only two schools in the country to qualify 2 teams for the National Championship! Way to go Hokies!
Scott and Charlie finished 2nd at the Northern Regional.
Wyatt and Carson finished 4th at the Northern Regional.
We would like to extend our thanks to all of our sponsors this season as we have had another extremely successful year. Mike Rogan, owner of Bagley Baits sent a box of shakey head jigs that helped the Hokies hook up on most of their keeper bass and it was greatly appreciated. 6 lb. Gamma Edge 100% Flourocarbon was the key to tricking the timid fall bass on Lake Norman. If you have not tried Gamma, you MUST. All of the Hokie sponsors deserve praise for their support of college fishing. We recognize how difficult the economy has been on business and how easy it would be to drop support for the college anglers but we understand that your help has made college fisherman the next generation of anglers who will keep the fishing industry rolling.
Two of our teams founding members, Scott Wiley and Charlie Machek returned to the arena of Collegiate Bass Fishing on September 26th to make one last statement for their Alma mater. Finishing the one day tournament on Lake Gaston in Bracey Virginia with 8 lbs 12 ounce, nearly a pound over the runner up NC State team.
Virginia Tech Finises 3rd on Champlain
National Guard FLW College Fishing event on 1000 Islands
Ryan Slate and Caleb Brown take home first for Virginia Tech
The night before we were looking at a map of the river and found some islands out in the middle with shallow water near deep water that had good points and also rocks/shoals that bass usually move to this time of summer. When we got out there first thing in the morning we realized that not only was the area not at all what we expected, but the fish were in a much earlier stage than we predicted.
So we went to a nearby bay with a creek and lots of docks. We discovered largemouth that were actually still in a postspawn pattern. They had spawned in that creek and had left the beds to sit on a certain type of wood dock. These docks had tons of grass nearby, but the grass always stopped about a foot before the edge of the dock. The shade from the dock created the perfect ambush position for the bass to catch baitfish that had moved up in this area.
We keyed in on these docks casting as close to the docks as possible with weightless 5 inch watermelon senkos with black/red flakes.
We had an empty livewell until Ryan hooked into the first fish around 9am on a big boathouse dock. He yelled “fish on, Caleb grab the net.” At that moment I hooked a fish and told him I couldn’t get the net. So the pro handed me the net, and I dipped the net to get my fish and in one swoop pulled out both fish. Both were 3+ pounds.
Our next fish came between two docks about 40 feet closer to shore, I saw a bass up under a dock and watched him eat my senko and set the hook before I felt the bite.
It was a great weekend and weighing in 18 lbs 15 ozs, and bringing home $10,000 made it well worth the drive up to New York.
The Big Event
Under Armour College Bass
East Super Regional
Clark's Hill Lake
The East Super Regional Tournament on Clark's Hill Lake seemed to come at a difficult time. The weather had produced snow a week before and during the tournament, the temperatures soared close to 90 degrees. Virginia Tech sent 3 teams down to compete. Practice was good to the guys and hopes were high for finishing in the top 5. After day 1, Wiley and Blevins stood in 3rd, Thompson and Machek in 6th, and Recjzer and White in 10th out of a field of 40. Weights were relatively low and everyone knew it would be a close finish. Day 2 proved to be tough again and the anglers ended up in 6th, 7th, and 22nd. Thompson and Machek were able to catch a few good keepers to edge out their team mates Wiley and Blevins but not quite enough to move them into top 5 and into the money.____________________________________________________
Southern Collegiate Bass Fishing Series
Guntersville Lake
Charlie and Scott with 2nd place plaque.
Scott and Charlie's 22 pounds on day 1.
Wyatt and Caleb's 20 pound bag on day 1.
JP and Brett with 8 pounds on day 1.
Scott and Charlie with their 19 pounds on day 2.
Preston and Andrew with their catch on day 2.
The Run Down:
Lake Guntersville proved to fish tough for some and bountiful for others. Overall, the 4 teams from Virginia Tech that went to compete placed well with one team clinching 2nd and another managing 6th from a field of 55 boats. The team of Scott Wiley and Charlie Machek were just bumped out of 1st place by mere ounces as University of Alabama-Birmingham brought in their second day's bag. The two day total for the winnning team from UAB came to 41.96 pounds for 10 fish and Wiley/Machek brought in 41.08 pounds over the two day competition.
Rattle baits were key in producing big bags this weekend and Virginia Tech's teams were no different. Most of the fish were brought in on standard rattle traps from 1/4 oz. to 1/2 oz. but working in the Bagley Baitfish often was the key to tricking some of the larger fish. The Bagley rattle bait has more vibration and rattles than the Bill Lewis version and has a distinctly different sound. Variety was a key to success this tournament in terms of size, sound, and color of lures.
The team of Wyatt Blevins and Caleb Brown were able to put up over 20 pounds on day 1 but stuggled to haul in 5 keepers on day 2. Their 2 day weight went to over 35 pounds and would have come close to the top if they had caught a limit on day 2. They finished 6th overall.
Wiley and Machek worked an area of water only 200 yards long the entire 2 days of competition. In practice, both top teams from Virginia Tech found the area that held and abundance of shad and bluegill for the bass to move up from deeper water and feed on. The key was a small creek channel that ran through a shallow flat with hydrilla and milfoil scattered throughout. The fish were moving actively throughout the grass searching for bait and would react to the rattle baits with agression. Blevins and Brown had opted to only fish this area if they needed keepers in a bind and could not get them uplake at another shallow grass bed that they had found success in.
For the first tournament of the year, the team is satisfied with the results and anxiously await the next tournament. On March 7 and 8, two teams will travel to Georgia's Clark's Hill Lake to compete in the Under Armour East Super Regional tournament to qualify for the National Championship. Please stay tuned in support of the Hokie fishing team.
Full results to come. Also see www.auburn.edu/bass for more info and photos of the tournament as they are posted.
Club Tournament 1 - 10 -2009
Smith Mountain Lake
16 lb. - 15 oz.
13 lb. - 8 oz.
8 lb. - 10 oz.
4th Place: Carson Rejzer (Left) and Nick White (Right)
5 lb. - 11 oz.
3 lb. - 14 oz.
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2008 National Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship
Lake Lewisville, TX - September 18-20
40th Place - Pace/Thompson
Tournament Day 2
The Hokies are sent home from Texas with a sour taste in their mouths after being in contention to fish the final day on Lewisville. The second day of fishing was quite eventful as the first placed team approached their group of fish with the same game plan as the first day. Missed opportunities cursed the team as they got the quality bites they needed to stay atop the leaderboard. Using 6 pound Gamma flourocarbon line, Abu Garcia Reels, JB Custom Rods, Bagley shakey heads, Gambler Sweebo worms, and CBs Hawg Sauce to top it off, bites were abundant and readily available to the Hokies as they worked floating docks in 15 - 25 feet of water. The fish were suspending and often sitting directly below the floating portions and would occasionally require a flick-shake style jig head with a wacky rigged worm to pick them off. Trouble came as three fish were broken off under the docks that each would have weighed near 5 lbs. Fishing this style is extremely unpredictable and can be rewarding as well. The second day just got the best of the team and crushed hopes of fishing for the title on the last day.
Tournament Day 1
Virginia Tech leads day one of the National Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship
The team of Wiley and Macheck came out firing today and pulled in a 19.60 pound limit of bass to put them ahead of Eastern Kentucky by mere ounces. Anchored by a big bass of the day at 7.98 pounds, the team is looking to add to the lead tomorrow and bring in enough to send them to the final day of competition.
The team of Thompson and Pace managed 8.69 and are sitting in the middle of the pack and have a good shot to make a move up in the standings tomorrow. More details and results will follow the tournament.
Practice 9/17
Today, Wiley and Machek went out to have fun and to save their bites for tomorrow. They fished until noon, flipping Sweet Beavers at shallow standing timber and were able to manage a few keepers over 3 pounds. The team is more confident with their deep routine and plan to bring good weights to the scales come tomorrow. Most anglers are covering shallow water and doing well finding fish on cover but the team of Thompson and Pace are looking perhaps shallower than others. They are targeting a different type of shoreline vegetation than most of the field and also feel strongly that they can bring in good numbers. Tournament action starts tomorrow as nerves rise in Texas. Nerves seem to only happen when a team feels that they have a winning pattern. Watch out tomorrow to see what day one brings the Hokies...
Practice 9/15 & 9/16
Lake Lewisville seems to be fishing better than last year. The fish are being cought utilizing several different techniques. The team of Thompson and Pace are shallow while Wiley and Machek are looking deeper. Chasing shad in main lake pockets, flipping shallow timber, and fishing the floating docks are proving to be the most prominent patterns. Keeper fish must be 14" for Largemouth and 12" for spotted bass. Wiley and Machek are looking to fill a quick limit of spots and change them out for the bigger largemouth later, while Thompson and Pace on a solid largemouth pattern.
Look for updates to the website and follow the Hokies in a field of over 100 boats. Practice has already shown catches of fish bigger than any fish in the tournament last year so total weights should be up. Anything from 13-15 pounds a day will be good to at least have a shot at the final day.
Under Armour College Bass National Championship
www.collegebass.com
NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!!
Tournament: Day 3
1st PLACE: 8 LBS. 8 OZ.
Wow, what an achievement. We worked so hard for this and are truly greatful for this honor and we are proud to have been part of this collegiate event. Bass fishing has come a long way for the college scene and we look forward to spreading the news and telling others about our passion.
The final day of fishing was much more stressful than any other day. Knowing that all weights were zeroed, we knew we had to produce and come in with a healthy limit to win. Our heads were going crazy all day trying to keep the best game plan in mind for each time of the day. The plan was to keep to the same pattern we had caught the bass on the previous two days and pray that they were still holding in our spots. We planned to catch our fish focusing on three main areas: a main river rock wall, a shallow lily pad area, and a backwater rock wall.
At the end of the day we had only caught four keepers and doubted our chances at the title, but luck was on our side. As we stood at the holding tanks awaiting our weigh-in, the largest bag to be weighed (four fish) was 4lb. 12oz. and our hopes became reality instantly. We weighed in 8lb. 8oz. and claimed Virginia Tech's first National title.
Tournament: Day 2
1ST PLACE: 26 LBS. 11 OZ.
We couldn't be more thrilled and excited about today and this whole week in general. After putting up 13 lbs. 11 oz. on the first day, our goal as a team was to head out today and fish for around 9 lbs, thinking that was what it would take to make the cut to 5 teams for the 3rd day. We fished some of the same areas and found some new water to locate keeper sized fish.
This morning, we had 2 keepers in the live-well at 7:25 am. We actually boated the 2nd keeper before the last boat had even left the boat dock. It took a good while for us to get another keeper, but when it did, we knew we were going to be fishing on Saturday. A 5lb. 7 oz. hog (picture below) got the spirits back up in a hurry. Immediately following that fish, not more than 2 cast later, came another keeper. We can't even describe the awesome emotions that we have to be fishing on the final day.
Tomorrow should be another day of speed fishing. We are cranking away at all sorts of river structures and fishing some backwater as well. We expect no less than to catch around the same weight as the first 2 days. We estimated over 1000 casts each day for each of us anglers. That is speed fishing and believe me, we are having a great time here on the Arkansas River!
Tournament: Day 1
2ND PLACE: 13 LBS. 11 OZ.
After finally establishing a pattern that caught us decent keepers the day before, we were forced to make a change. Today brought partly cloudy skies and 85 degree heat, uncharacteristic for this time of year. We made all the right decisions today and were able to quickly figure out a new method for enticing the largemouth on the Arkansas River. The goal coming into the tournament was to make the final 5 teams and fish on Saturday for the shot at 1st place. Check out the websites above for full tournament coverage
The BASS weigh-in stage
Practice:
The weather has not been cooperative for the past couple days. Early morning fog delayed launch until 10am on Tuesday and Wednesday has been full of cloudy skies and intense rainfall. The pelting rain against our face felt like needles as we traveled from spot to spot, but we endured the physical pain and tough conditions.
The past days we have spent a lot of time searching for areas where good fish may hold and places where we feel confident in fishing. The river is tricky and we are still trying to figure out different patterns the fish may be on. We have thrown almost everything in our tackle boxes but we are confident that we have the right baits and many quality areas where fish are holding. The fifteen inch limit on largemouth is bigger than expected but we are confident going into day one of the tournament. Lets hope the weather cooperates!
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2007 Boat US National Collegiate Bass Fishing Tournament
collegiatebasschampionship.com
The Story of the Week
What Were They Biting?
Each day of the week, practice or tournament, the fish were biting and each team caught atleast 20 fish a
day. Unfortunately many of the fish were 8-12" in length and hungry for anything you threw in the water.
Fish species caught during the week included largemouth and spotted bass, white bass and a few bluegill.
What were our keepers biting?
- ZOOM Baby Brush Hog
- GARY YAMAMOTO Senko
- ZOOM Ol Monster 10.5" Worm
- SHAW's Shakey Worm
What Was Our Pattern?
Each practice day consisted of exploring the new lake and finding where fish were holding. All different
lures were thrown to find out what they may bite and each spot was marked when fish were caught. We
found most fish in the flooded willows and on rocky points everywhere on the lake. We targeted those
areas each day and continually found fish. Most fish were caught on the edge of the willows in 5-10' of
water. The most successful areas seemed to be those that were underfished and ones we
had confidence in.
DAY 5: Tournament Day 2
Team Grinnell/Thompson finish in 7th Place!!
They had a limit of five fish today that weighed 9.88lbs. They unfortunately do not get to advance to the
final day and will return home (Blacksburg) tomorrow.
Team Wiley/Machek finish in 34th Place!!
They had a tough day, having no fish at 3pm. Fortunately, they were able to land two before their weigh in
at 3:20pm with almost four pounds. Comin' through in the clutch! The whole week they motivated
themselves with the words, "Never give up!"
DAY 4: Tournament Day 1
Team Grinnell/Thompson:
Had two keepers by 9:30 and was slow the rest of the day. Lost two nice fish at boat, one snapping line
and the other shook off, biggest fish of the day most likely. Managed to catch one more keeper and
caught one fish that did not measure at weigh in (1/8" short). Weighed three fish at 7.24lbs.
Team Wiley/Machek:
Caught many fish, unfortunately many were short. Had a couple of keepers get off at boat but still
managed to bring in two for the weigh in. They feel they have a solid pattern, but most capitalize on the
quality bites during the day in order to advance to Saturday. Weighed two fish at 4.44lbs
DAY 3: Practice
Team Grinnell/Thompson:
The morning cloud cover provided great weather, but the fishing continued to be slow. They fished the
dam and stayed on the pattern they fished previous days. They managed two keeper fish back to back
around 10am at their new 'hot spot'. Finding the big bite tomorrow will be tough, hopefully the big ones will
be hungry.
Team Wiley/Machek:
Searching for new, promising spots with big fish was the plan for the day (the best plan for any day). They
unfortunately could not find the big bites they were looking for, but were able to find small bites in every
area. The team remains confident they can find big fish tomorrow on spots found on day 1 and 2.
DAY 2: Practice
Team Grinnell/Thompson:
Fish came much easier today with a better understanding of where they were located. Morning bite was
good, but there was no topwater bite. Ten fish were caught before 11am, but unfortunately most were
short and they only bagged two keepers. The afternoon was slow, but one more keeper fish was caught.
Team Wiley/Machek:
Making a long run to the north end of the lake they managed one keeper and several short fish. The day
was full of exploring the new lake and finding potential hot spots. They found fish wherever they went, but
the bigger bite continued to be hard to find. There day came to an abrupt ending with motor problems
and a tow into the marina.
DAY 1: Practice
Team Grinnell/Thompson:
Fishing out of a fully loaded boat provided by Angler's Choice Marine, the team caught a decent number
of fish on the first day of practice. The size just was not there for them on day one, but nonetheless they
caught fish. They have a good idea of where to locate the bigger fish and plan to go after them in day 2.
As long as they increase their weight each day, the tournament will be looking good.
Team Wiley/Machek:
Starting out the morning with motor troubles, the team lost 2 hours and had to work hard for the fish they
got. All in all, they boated around 20 fish caught on many different presentations. Two fish went about 3lb.
or more, and an estimated 5 or 6 fish weighed close to 2lbs. a piece. The 14" minimum forced some of
those 2 lb. fish to fall short, but there was a promising feeling to the days catch. The patterns are coming
together and tomorrow should begin to look even better. Stay tuned, we will try to update daily from
Lewisville, Texas.
Lake Gaston
VT vs NC State
The tournament was held one week prior to leaving to go the Boat U.S. National Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship in order to get tuned up. Two teams from our club and two from N.C. State's club met at lake Gaston to fish with a small competitive atmosphere.
Wiley and Machek placed first weighing in over 10.5 lbs. for a 5 fish limit. Grinnell and Thompson were able to round up around 5lbs. of fish on Saturday. The team of McClenny and Hess from N.C. State placed second with around 8lbs. Overall, the two schools combined wieghts were extremely close but it looked like VT was able to nudge ahead by an ounce or two.
After the small tournament on Saturday the team headed out again on Suday and caught much better fish.
The picture below is from Sunday's catch.
Woods and Water Alabama Invitational
It was a rough tournament in all aspects. From a broken tail light ticket, to car and boat motor troubles, this was not our tournament from the get go. Our trip to Alabama will be remembered by hot miserable days and catching few fish on the Black Warrior River. The tournament was set up with one practice day and three days of tournament fishing, with the five top teams advancing to the third day. The teams consisted of Scott and Chase in one boat and Brett and Charlie in the other boat.
With only marking a few spots in practice day we were a bit concerned about going into day one of the
tournament. Brett and Charlie bagged two during the day, but managed to have motor trouble in the evening and were towed to the boat ramp. Scott and Chase had an exciting morning bite and managed a couple of fish for the weigh in. Each teams totals were average for the day and gave them a chance to make the cut at the end of day two.
Day two was much of the same, but presented us with a slower bite and tougher atmosphere. Brett and Charlie's boat was unable to run on day two and relied on local areas around the ramp for a big bite. The day got tougher and tougher as it went as our available spots decreased and began to fish the same spots over and over. They managed one keeper in the afternoon on a shakeyhead. Scott and Chase struggled the Alabama heat and the tough bite, but were unable to have any keepers.
The weigh in was commentated by Classic winner Boyd Duckett, but that was the only exciting part. Each team fell in the standings with only one fish being weighed for Virginia Tech. With the 20 teams that competed, Brett and Charlie finished in 11th place and Scott and Chase finished in 15th place.
Falls Lake Collegiate Classic
Forming two teams only a week before the tournament the team drove to North Carolina to enter the Falls Lake Collegiate Classic and to get a first hand glimpse of collegiate bass fishing. The trip offered many new experiences for the team, including: pre-tournament meetings, shotgun starts, official weigh-ins televised broadcasting and tournament prizes. Scott and Chase finished 1st and Brett and Charlie finished 4th.
