It could be the unusually warm weather. It could be improved health. Or it could be a combination of both, but Fort Loudoun and Tellico Lakes are fishing much better ahead of the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour than the last two visits to Knoxville.
Water temperatures are between 55 and 65 degrees, depending on the section of the lakes, the water is clear and the bass were biting on Day 1 of practice for the Super Bowl of Bass Fishing.
“I think it’s a much better fishery,” 2024 Bassmaster Classic champion Justin Hamner remarked. “I caught more bass today than I did the entire Elite tournament in 2021.”
This Bassmaster Classic will almost certainly have a different feel than the 2021 Elite Series event and the 2023 Bassmaster Classic, both won by Jeff Gustafson. The water temperatures were in the 40s and low 50s for both of those events, and a cold rain didn’t help the moods of the bass or the anglers.
“The first time I came here, when Gussy won the first time, the Day 1 cut weight was 5 pounds,” three-time Elite Series champion Lee Livesay said. “Those were the lowest weights I had ever seen. Today, I saw better quality than I have in the past, but in the past, it’s been hard to get bites.”
Air temperatures reached the 80-degree mark in east Tennessee on Friday, and the warming trend is expected to continue until the eve of Day 1, with a couple rounds of rain mixed in. While plenty could change in a week’s time, all signs are pointing to an excellent prespawn derby.
“I was surprised how warm the water was,” Hamner said. “I found water in the low 60s. It is going to stay pretty warm, and there’s a lot of small fish already pulled up.”
Defending Classic champion Easton Fothergill enjoyed a productive first day of practice. Several different patterns presented themselves, and each produced quality bites. He believes the field of 58 anglers will be able to fish however they feel most comfortable.
“I’m seeing good fish shallow and deep. Overall, I’m really happy with what I’ve seen,” the Minnesota pro said. “Halfway back in the pockets there are good largemouth, and then on the main lake, smallmouth are (close) to spawning-type stuff.”
Fothergill, Hamner and Livesay all caught a mix of largemouth and smallmouth on the first warm-up day. With an adjusted 15-inch size limit, there is more of an opportunity for the entire field to be successful with brown fish this year.
Given the current conditions, there’s a good chance the top finishers will be catching a mix of both.
“You can catch good smallmouth in similar places as good largemouth right now,” Hamner said.
Fort Loudoun has typically received the most attention from anglers in the three Bassmaster events held in Knoxville, but with the new size limit and the advancements in forward-facing sonar, Livesay believes Tellico Lake could be a more prominent player this time around.
“A couple of guys have gone down there before, but I think the whole river system is playing this time,” he explained. “I can see guys catching on the main drag of Tellico all the way to the bottom of it. Places we’ve never seen play before, I can see guys catching big bags of smallmouth there.
“But it is also a lot further away (from takeoff).”
Although the offshore bite has been productive thus far, the warming weather could send even more bass to the shallows.
Both fisheries are still at winter pool, and on the Tennessee River, the bass tend to wait to spawn until there’s more water over their heads. While they are further along than he anticipated entering the week, Fothergill doesn’t think many bass will commit to the spawning process despite favorable water temperatures.
“I think they’ll wait for the water to come up. I could be wrong, but I did look for spawning smallmouth and didn’t see any,” Fothergill said. “I don’t think they’ll pull up, but they’ll be right there ready to go.”
The real wild card is how much rain the region gets before the start of the tournament. The forecast has changed daily, and the total amount of rain that will fall is uncertain, but a significant amount of rain could introduce some stain to areas that are currently pretty clear.
