YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING WINNING TACTICS
ON TOUR
YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING
YETI FLW COLLEGE FISHING WINNING TACTICS
By Chad Love
72 noRtheRn conFeRence lake eRIe – sept . 9 adRIan colleGe
high winds stacking up fish in a protected marina was the key to victory for the Adrian College duo of Chase Serafin of Highland , mich ., and Cody Batterson of Pleasant Hill , Iowa , who won the YETI FlW College Fishing Northern Conference tournament at lake Erie presented by Bass Pro Shops on Sept . 9 . Their five-bass limit weighed 17 pounds , 2 ounces .
A small craft advisory on lake Erie the day of the tournament limited options for Serafin and Batterson , so they remained in Sandusky Bay and focused their efforts on a wind-protected marina . That pattern paid off , as the two quickly found fish .
“ I think the key for us was just finding that marina ,” says Serafin , a junior studying business marketing . “ I think the fish were trying to leave and go to the main lake , but the wind just grouped them up back into the marina . It was an awesome day of fishing .”
Batterson , a sophomore biology major , caught the majority of his fish snapping a mike ’ s Rx Baits tube ( green pumpkin ) through scattered eelgrass around the marina , while Serafin used a homemade jig tipped with a Bugsy ’ s Baits USA Sick Craw trailer .
“ You had to be snapping or cracking the jig and tube ,” Serafin says . “ You ’ d snap it two or three times , and they ’ d crush it on the fall .”
The pair also caught fish on a Rapala DT6 ( old school ) crankbait and a Rapala BX Brat ( haymaker ).
soUtheRn conFeRence Red RIveR – sept . 23 lsU shRevepoRt
the lSU Shreveport team of Harrison Hopkins of Bossier City , la ., and Ryan Antee of Hosston , la ., barely had to crank its motor to win the YETI FlW College Fishing Southern Conference tournament at the Red River presented by Bass Pro Shops Sept . 23 .
Hopkins and Antee stuck within a few hundred yards of the launch site in Bossier City , la ., to catch a five-bass limit weighing 11 pounds , 7 ounces .
During the first couple hours of the tournament the pair threw a black buzzbait in 3 to 4 feet of water in and around a stump field they had pre-fished in practice . Once the sun got up , they targeted laydowns and brush piles by flipping a Texas-rigged Zoom UV Speed Craw .
“ Practice was really key for us in this tournament ,” says Hopkins , a sophomore majoring in business . “ We found our fish on Wednesday and left them alone until the morning of the tournament . luckily , they were still there .”
“ We got three good keepers off the morning buzzbait bite , including one that was our biggest of the tournament ,” says Antee , a sophomore business major . “ After the topwater bite slowed down we went to our midday pattern , where we ended up catching two more decent keepers to fill out our limit .”
flWfIshIng . com I november-december 2017