High School and College fishing "Grind" of New Water

In recent years, the popularity of high school and college bass fishing has grown exponentially. There's no denying the effectiveness of the programs, as they have helped develop many of today's professional bass anglers. These young anglers are traveling, fishing new waters, and learning to catch bass. The competition and camaraderie from these events are also creating an enthusiastic next generation of anglers.

One challenge, especially for those who fish outside of their home region at events, is learning how to break down new water, but some techniques work just about everywhere. Carson-Newman Fishing Team head coach Hunter Sales fished in college events and high school himself and now competes as a professional in the National Professional Fishing League, and shared some insight on how to approach this dilemma. 

Decorated Illinois high school angler and Bassmaster High School All-American, Carter Pjesky, also weighed in on how he approaches events away from home to find success and the baits he can't leave home without.

Three Baits that Work Everywhere

Each part of the country has subtle differences in fishing styles and techniques that work, but some things will catch a bass everywhere. For Sales, who works closely with his Carson-Newman Eagles as they prepare to travel, it's a jerkbait, jighead minnow, and a jig.

"It seems like the jerkbait plays in events everywhere across the country and in all seasons now, especially with forward-facing sonar," he said. "Our team fishes them everywhere, and they go through a lot of 12 lb Seaguar InvizX® fluorocarbon, which I feel is the perfect diameter for jerkbaits, and it casts so well."

A skirted jig and a minnow on a jighead are two more that play in all types of fisheries. "A flipping jig is so versatile because you can fish them around brush or docks, just about every lake has a place where it will work," he said. "Our guys use a lot of 20 lb Seaguar Red Label® for the jig because it's so tough when fishing around cover. The jighead minnow is everywhere and seems to get top finishes across the country right now, and for that, we like 21 lb PEX8 braid with a leader of 12 lb Gold Label® fluorocarbon."

Pjesky chose two of the same lures as Sales, proving how versatile they can be. "The jig is hard to beat, and the second one would be a jighead minnow," he shared. "The third would be the good old Senko, fishing one on a wacky rig works everywhere."

When fishing a jig, Pjesky opts for 15 lb Seaguar Tatsu® fluorocarbon, and for his finesse rigs like the jighead minnow and wacky rig, he goes with a braid-to-fluorocarbon setup. "I love the 18 lb PEX8 braid, it's by far the best casting braid I've ever used, and it's unbelievably thin," he said. "For my leader, I go with Gold Label fluorocarbon and vary my size based on the water clarity, cover, and size of fish I'm around."

Breaking Down a New Lake

The tournament trail, especially championship events, often takes these young anglers far from home and their comfort zone. To help this, Sales shares his wisdom with his team as they prepare for each event, and the simplest thing he conveys is to fish for your strengths, no matter where you are competing. 

"College fishing rewards wins and high finishes instead of points like the professional trails, so you have to fish to win to try to get your name out there," he said. "To do that, you have to fish something that you are very confident in and good at, whatever technique that may be. I tell my team to show up to practice and try to find an area where you can do what you love to do and keep it in your hand, because that will be your best chance to win."

Although he lives in the Midwest, Pjesky and his partners travel across the country to compete at top-level high school events. This often puts him in unfamiliar fisheries, making his practice period crucial. 

"If it's a lake that I'm unfamiliar with, I try to do a lot of idling and scanning on the first day," he said. "But, I also do a lot of fishing in practice to get a feel for what is happening on the lake and start to figure out my best spots so I can make a 'milk run' and hit the spots in order of how good I think they are." 

Another tip that Pjesky shared that has helped him as he fished from junior high until last season with partner JD McBroom, and now teaming up with Landon Gabby, is to fish with as many people as possible. 

"Getting in the boat with other anglers is a great way to learn," he said. "You can learn so much from everyone you fish with and will pick up things, which is huge to becoming better. I'd say aside from anything else, fish with as many different people as you can to improve your skills."

The Growth of Scholastic Fishing

Sales has seen these programs grow firsthand and believes they will continue to grow. "About ten years ago, it really started taking off, and we started seeing 50 and 75-boat college events and thinking that was pretty neat. Now some trails are full and capped out at 250 boats," he said. "That's all fueled by the success of high school fishing because there are tons of kids who want to continue fishing after that."

The movement of more young anglers fishing for their schools has also attracted fishing brands that want to support the youth anglers, including Seaguar's Scholastic Program, which works with anglers across the country. Both Pjesky and the Carson-Newman University Eagle Anglers work with the brand and fish the lines exclusively. Coaches and team leaders interested in the program can find all of the details and application at seaguar.com.

"Seaguar has been connected to Carson-Newman for a long time, and it's been a good partnership, and our guys really enjoy the opportunity to fish the best line out there," said Sales. "It's great that they can fish top-quality gear while they are out there chasing this dream."

Seaguar is also a proud and longtime sponsor of the Bassmaster Youth Series of tournaments which includes College, High School and Junior Events. The growth of high school and college fishing has been strong in recent years and shows no signs of slowing down. Getting more youth anglers involved in fishing and the outdoors is a win-win all around.

Seaguar PEX8 Micro Braid is available in 200-meter spools (219 yards) and comes in 12, 16, 18, 21, 24, and 33 lb tests. (This is a micro-thin braid. Please check line diameter when selecting product.)

Seaguar Gold Label Fluorocarbon leader is available in 25- and 50-yard spools in 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 lb tests for freshwater use, complementing the 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, and 80 lb test leaders available for saltwater. 

Seaguar Tatsu Fluorocarbon mainline is available from 4 to 25 lb tests on 200- and 1,000-yard spools.

Seaguar InvizX Fluorocarbon mainline is available from 4 to 25 lb tests on 200-, 600- and 1,000-yard spools.

Seaguar Red Label Fluorocarbon mainline is available from 4 to 20 lb tests on 200- and 1,000-yard spools.