RICHMOND, Va. — Anderson Jones is plenty familiar with tidal waters. Growing up, he and his dad redfished around Isle of Palms in Charleston and still compete in redfish derbies. Very little of his tidal experience revolved around bass in freshwater, but that didn’t stop him from dominating Day 1 of the 2026 Strike King Bassmaster College Series at James River presented by Bass Pro Shops.
The Lander University senior landed 23 pounds, 15 ounces to take the Day 1 lead in eastern Virginia, anchoring that bag with an 8-10 largemouth that claimed Big Bass of the Day honors. He holds a 2-5 advantage over the Carson-Newman University duo of Dylan May and Landon Myers heading into the final day.
Tidal rivers provide plenty of hurdles on their own, but this week competitors dealt with heavy rains that muddied up the James River and its tributaries. While seven bags over 18 pounds made it back to weigh-in, the majority of the 170-boat field brought in less than 13 pounds.
While Jones pointed out redfish and largemouth set up on completely different structures, the way they respond to the tide is essentially the same. As the water moves out, or in, they find the best places to ambush prey.
“I don’t think they really care what it is,” he said. “Figuring out the clock on these rivers is really the key. They feed on a clock.”
His tidal prowess, and his love for Florida strain largemouth, pointed Jones to the Chickahominy River. In practice, he looked around until he started seeing patches of vegetation, primarily hydrilla. He didn’t catch many bass, but the ones he did were all over 3 pounds. The water in that area was noticeably cleaner as well.
“They stocked Florida strain largemouth in there, and when I heard that it lit me up like a lightbulb,” Jones said.
Entering the tournament in 5th-place in the Lunkers Trail Team of the Year race, just 22 points behind first-place Tallis Morrison and Lane Clark, the 24-year-old knew he needed to stay around the bass he thought he could win with.
“If I wanted to win the points, I needed to be around the bass to win this tournament,” he said. “Four hours to fish is a little curveball, but hitting the tide right paid off.”
On Day 1, the tide cycle lined up almost perfectly for Jones, who had to run for more than an hour to his primary area. A strong outgoing tide was occurring when he arrived, and he caught the entirety of his bag within the first hour of fishing, including the almost 9-pounder.
“I didn’t have a net, which made things a little interesting. I saw it on my forward-facing sonar on the edge of the grass. I thought it was a catfish or a carp or something. I threw over there anyway and when I hooked her, she didn’t move. She just slowly rose and when it made its first jump, the head on it was gigantic.”
Jones used two baits to land his limit, and while he utilized his forward-facing sonar, he didn’t see most of the bass until he threw a bait over to the grass edges. In his hour flurry, he landed over 10 bass.
Jones has a later boat draw on Day 2, which is a good news, bad news scenario. The good news; the tide should set up the same. The bad news; an already crowded area could be more crowded when he arrives.
Myers and May finished the day with 21-10 while their Carson-Newman teammates Hunter Owens and Jackie Hatfield landed in third with 20-1. Adrian College’s Brady Osborn and Connor Racine are fourth with 19-15 while Phillip Herring and Parker O’Bryan from the University of West Alabama are fifth with 18-14.
The full field of 170 teams will launch from Osborne Park in Richmond beginning at 6 a.m. ET and return for weigh-in starting at 2 p.m. At tournament’s end, the Top 10 percent of the field will punch their ticket to the 2026 Strike King Bassmaster College Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops.
The Lunkers Trail Team of the Year race will also come to a close, and the winners will earn their spot in the College Classic Bracket presented by Lew’s, details of which will be announced at a later time.
The Henrico Sports and Entertainment Authority and Richmond Region Tourism are hosting the tournament.
