BassBlaster

Is Cody Huff the next dude? Hack likes clear-ish cold water, Don’t space out!

Today’s Top 5

Who’s Cody Huff and why are you learnin’ ’bout him here?

Guess he’s a bass fisherman? HAHAHA! Yep he is, and seems he’s got some for-real mojo. He’s a 22-yr-old Bethel U (TN) student who won the recent Bassmaster College Series team derby on Toledo Bend with pard Dakota Pierce, then DROVE HOME to drop Dakota off, and turned around and DROVE BACK to T-Bend to fish the FLW Series Southwestern Division opener last weekend…and won it.

Pretty dang stout! But wait there’s more — his home is Ava, MO (Rick Clunn’s house maybe??), and he decided to fish both tourneys just like he fishes back home this time of year: with a jigging spoon. On Toledo Bend. Against SERIOUS hammers.

Hole up — did I mention he’s fishing this year’s Bassin’masters Classic?? After winnin’ the Bassmaster College Series bracket deal last year. There’s even more than that, so he could have some swag but is all:

Here’s Cody and some of his recent wins:
Okay to the FLW Series win:

> …he didn’t come south with that game plan in mind. “When Dakota and I got here we…saw bait popping all over the bank…and thought, ‘Man, these things are shallow’…all of a sudden we saw big school of fish swim under the boat on our graph. I dropped to them and caught a 5-lber. That’s when we knew they were out.

> “The fish were shallower early last week in the mouths of the creeks, but when that cold front hit, it moved them. The first day of the college tournament we caught them close to the creeks, the second day halfway out and the third day out in the main river channel.”

> …almost exactly how things shook out this week. The bait and bass pushed halfway back towards the creeks from the river channel over the first 2 days. On the final day, Huff had to scramble around to relocate the fish back near the main channel.

> “From 11:00 on most every day those bass started to group up and that’s when you could really catch them,. Whenever you’d see them in that 15-30′ range, they’re catchable. When they get below that they’re not really feeding….”

He fished a 7/8-oz War Eagle Jiggin’ Spoon (nickel) on 12-lb Sufix Advance Fluorocarbon, and with a 6′ 8″ Johnny Morris Signature Series Rod and 7.8:1 Johnny Morris Signature Series Reel:

Here’s how the top 10’s baits broke down:

Carolina rig = 50% (mostly critter baits)

Crankbait = 30%

20% each = Spoon, Dropshot, Football jig

10% each = Swimbait, Underspin (with a white V&M Wild Shad, which ain’t out yet)

Shout-outs:

> Cody was the only guy not from LA or TX in the top 10.

> TX’s Chris Lewis (6th) fished like Cody but used a Cotton Cordell Jigging Spoon and a Dixie Jet Original Flutter Spoon, also in a plain nickel/chrome color.

> Strike King bait designer Phil Marks is a T-Bend hammer AND never fishes with a bait that doesn’t end in the letters XD. This time he fished the 6XD and finished 10th. No one surprised, not even the fish….

“…in fishing, if your mind wanders for a minute, you can ruin a season.”

– Elitist Stetson Blaylock talkin’. Whoa. That’s for sure true for the pro guys, never heard it expressed thataway before.

‘Nother way of sayin’ it: Weighing 4 fish instead of 5 on 1 SINGLE DAY in the entire season can make or break a season. Not sure what the equivalent is on the Bass Pro Tour — maybe 1 bad decision to stay/go or change/not change — but it’s gotta be true there too.

One more thing on Stets’ quote: Might be more like 5 seconds….

Does the Savage DC Frog solve a problem?

DC = Dual Chamber:

> …the Savage Gear DC Walker Frog [and all Savage DC baits] is built with a lower chamber for the hook[s] and an independently-sealed upper chamber that minimizes water intrusion and allows the bait to seamlessly glide across the surface….

Don’t see a price yet so my only question is: Is this solution needed enough that folks will give up their fave frogs for this one, assuming price and action are good? Not sure….

What’s this streamer fly telling us?

The most popular streamer fly ever is called the “Clouser minnow” — here ’tis dry:

Here’s wet:

I don’t really fly-fish, but when I did for a bit I caught many a feesh on those things. What does this tell us in bass-land?

> I guess it’s like swimbaits and worms on jigheads? Neds? We already know this….

> Above all I think it’s fish slooooooower. There’s really no way to fish those things fast — it’s fly fishing. Okay there’s 1 way, but fly peeps only do that with ultra-fast salty fish…. So maybe we should fish slower…even though we’re not wired thataway?

Ever pumped gas into your rod holder?

Well the guy who owns this boat did, down in FL:

> A man was so excited to go fishing with his buddies Monday, he accidentally pumped $60 worth of gas into the cockpit of his 18-footer before noticing….

> The boater put the gas pump nozzle in the fishing pole hole and 30 gallons later he saw the fuel filling the boat. That’s when he took the nozzle out and put it in the correct place, where he pumped another $40 of gas into the tank.

Crazy thing is how many stories of similar stuff happening were left as comments on the post, like this spooky one the dude swears really happened:

> Had this happen at a Marina here in NC. When the guy figured out what he did, he got scared and figured he’d better unhook the battery so it wouldn’t create a spark. Only he accidentally hit the wrench across the 2 posts and blew himself out of the boat.

Apparently he made it — thank goodness man wow.

News

1. Ott DeFoe ain’t a-fishin’ the Classic.

Apparently the state of AL doesn’t allow barefoot fishing in “commercial fishing tournaments.”

Hahaha! Okay he can’t cuz he didn’t fish the Elites last year, but I guess peeps were a-wonderin’ anyhow so here’s some of what he said:

> When we chose to fish the Bass Pro Tour instead of the Elite Series, we knew this would be the last Classic I would qualify for.

> Not fishing it this year makes me appreciate the win in Knoxville even more. I can always say I won it. My name will be on the trophy from here on out.

But you know what? Trophies fade. Titles lose importance. People forget. Money gets spent. Accolades become ancient history. I’m reminded of a passage from the book of Matthew, chapter 6 [Jesus talking]:

“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”

> There will be a new Classic winner this year. I know for a fact that it’s a career-changer. My hope is we will grow the Bass Pro Tour’s championship to be a career-changer as well.

> I plan to be in Birmingham to hand off the trophy. I’ll be at the Expo on Sunday and welcome anyone to stop by and say hello.

2. Bobby Lane gets Star brite.

3. 3 guys get Ark stuff.

Not just rods — Gerald Swindle is for rods, and Brent Ehrler and Brett Hite for Ark tungsten sinkers.

4. 3 guys get Sunline.

Elitists Carl Jocumsen, Luke Palmer and Wes Logan. Also added Opens dudes Todd Castledine and Matt “not just in the Zone” Pangrac.

5. Elitist Drew Benton gets Big Bite.

Also Opens dudes Matty Pangrac and B-Rad-Lee Hallman.

6. Johnny Crews/Missile is giving out free stuff…

…to marshals on Missile pro team Elite boats. This is a small step for bass-head kind, but I sure hope it’s leads to bigger steps back to where anyone — pro, co, marshal, whatever — who showed up for a derby got a PILE of free stuff. Helped Zoom get built, for example….

Startin’ to think Crews is smarter than he lets on…but that whole squirrel fishin’ deal really makes me wonder:

7. Elitist Bernie Schultz on BassEdge Radio.

8. Elitist Caleb Sumrall’s been running 25-30 miles a week.

Good for him but that’s borderline crazy? Here’s a quick clip of him gettin’ goin’ at the house:

Heehee!

9. FLWer Chad Grigsby gets CanCooker.

10. FL: OnEm “Matt” Robertson won the Nation deal…

…at Okeechobee like this:

> …caught his fish on a Strike King 4.75″ Rage Swimmer in “ayu” rigged on a 5/0 swimbait hook and a 1/8-oz bullet weight. A burning retrieve produced best.

> …he stayed in a 600-yard area the entire time…had a mix of pencil reeds, flat reeds, Kissimmee grass and hyacinth…he was able to cover water at his leisure and hunt for aggressive pre-spawn bass.

Livin’ up to the lid:

11. Garmin signed a 3-year deal with B.A.S.S.

12. NY: Costs $60K to host a BPT tourney…

…at the at St Lawrence anyhow:

> Ogdensburg will spend $50,000…. Hosting the tournament comes with a $60,000 price tag, $10,000 of which St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce will pay.

13. How to install a new MotorGuide Tour (vid).

Check MotorGuide’s Sam n Nate unboxin’, preparin’ and installin’ the new Tour. Good vid and don’t take their lack of smiling (c’mon fellas!) to mean having a new troller ain’t fun cuz you know it is:

14. Rapala DTs are on big-time sale at Tackle Warehouse.

Not sure how long it’ll last but make sure you get at least a couple DT6s and 16s. The pros mostly use the Ike colors so….

15. New colors of SPRO McStick jerkbait and Little John crank.

> BPTer Mike Mc “Stick” Clelland: “The new colors will give fish something they aren’t used to seeing.” New McStick 110 colors include: nanko reaction, ghost magic purple, Mc ayu shad, and pm twilight.
> Elitist Little John Crews: “I saw a need for a realistic perch color. The new ‘homemade shad’ color has a silver scale/shad pattern that is incredibly realistic.”

16. Here’s the new Skeeter ZX150.

17. BPS Collegiate Bass Fishing gets Wiley X.

Seems like Wiley X is gradually expanding its footprint….

Can’t link it ^ — it’s at thefishingwire.com.

18. Repetitive casting injuries becoming more common?

One guy’s opinion, from experience:

> I began serious competitive fishing for largemouth bass in my early 20s and my first related fishing injury did not occur until I was in my early 40s. That injury was diagnosed as tennis elbow and was extremely painful.

> …would be the first of several injuries that eventually caused me to stop competitive angling for a slower-paced recreational angling.

> My injuries included elbow surgery, arm surgery, multiple hand surgeries, multiple back surgeries, knee surgery, planter fasciitis and foot surgery. All of those surgeries may not be directly the result of fishing but I know fishing was a major contributing factor.

All you young dudes — these things creep up on you man. Body’s all good til all of a sudden it’s not! Take care of yourself.

19. Brunswick predicts slightly better boat/motor sales in ’20.

Not sure if they’re sandbagging to look good later or what but:

> For 2020, we project U.S. marine industry retail unit demand for the year to be flat to slightly up versus 2019.

20. 200+ hp motor sales way up in ’19.

> …2019 led by engines 200hp+, accounting for 27% of sales….

On BassBlaster.rocks right now…

Note: The TackleWarehouse links in this email are affiliate links, meaning if you go through them to make a purchase I might earn a commission…at no cost to you. Click here if you want to learn a little more about links in the BB.

Tip of the Day

Greg Hackney likes “clear” cold water in the pre-spawn.

LA Sportsman vid of the famous LA Bassquatch hunter — this part stood out to me:

> “The colder the water, the clearer I want it. Because the deal is, what happens in cold water is you know their strike zone is not as big. You go put dirty water in there, you hardly have any strike zone without banging them right on the head.

> “…when the water’s really cold, they’re more visible feeders then. And so those dirty water fish just seem to shut down….

> “…what I really call good fishing water — you can see a foot or a foot and half deep. It’s just got that real pretty green color to it.”

Note that last deal — he’s fishing in LA so “clear” ain’t like you’d find in your average highland rez.

Wait — he also says in there that the dalmation spots on largies only happen in females because of the stress of carrying eggs? My mother in law’s dog heard that on the vid and was like:

Quote of the Day

“God works in mysterious ways and when it’s meant to be you just can’t stop it.”

Cody Huff talkin’ ’bout his latest win, or maybe both recent wins? Either way sounds like he’s got the right perspective which in my 2c is this: Work as hard as you can, and let God control the outcomes…because He does and no matter what you believe, you gotta admit that we 100% don’t! Although I do tell my wife she’s one lucky lady…occasionally….

Shot of the Day

FLWer Tyler Woolcott was prefeeshn the Harris Chain, FL and caught himself a HEALTHY chunk o’ green melon. Pic of the day cuz it made me jealous and also made me look forward to GETTIN’ ON THEM FEESH IN 2020 YO! Only not in NJ cuz they don’t get that big here…dang it….

Believe that’s the SIMMS ProDry Jacket btw….

Random

Ya got me
Jay Kumar’s BassBlaster is a daily-ish roundup

of the best, worst and funniest in bassin’, as curated by me — Jay Kumar. I started BassFan.com, co-hosted Loudmouth Bass with Zona, was a B.A.S.S. senior writer and a bunch more in bassin’. The Blaster is the #2 daily read on any given day in the wide world o’ bass so thanks for readin’!

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