John Crews knows one good turn deserves another, so he has a nice surprise for Emil Wagner after the Elite rookie’s victory sent Crews to the Classic.
Intently watching from his home in Salem, Va., Crews recorded his reaction to Wagner weighing in last at the Nitro Boats Elite Qualifier at Lake Champlain presented by Bass Pro Shops.
“I thought it would be fun either way,” the 47-year-old Crews said. “If he didn’t win, it would be defeating, but I would have shown that emotion as well.”
When Wagner posted the winning weight, Crews threw up his arm and shouted an enthusiastic “Yes!” His fate flipped from first-man out to qualifier for the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.
With up-and-down results in nine Elite Series events, Crews was sweating Classic qualification. The top 40 anglers in Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year points receive automatic berths to the Tennessee River championship out of Knoxville.
“I was good until Tenkiller, where I totally laid an egg,” said Crews, whose 93rd-place finish knocked him 17 places back to 63rd. “I’d just been yo-yoing all year, get close and fall down, get close and fall again.”
With two events left, there was still a chance. Crews’ 42nd-place finish at Lake St. Clair bumped him up to 54th, giving him a target for the season finale at La Crosse. He believed a Top 10 might do the trick, and he narrowly missed at 11th. Good news is Crews moved up to 44th in AOY points. The bad was that, even with double qualifiers, the line to make was 43rd.
“I was first man out,” he said. “I just got to hope now – it was kind of unnerving because there’s nothing I can do.
“You have to have some crazy things line up. I really had kind of come to peace with it. I’ve had an amazing, blessed career, but I’m not done yet. It would be awesome if I got in. If I don’t, everything would still be OK.”
There were 105 entrants in the Sept. 18-20 Champlain EQ, about a dozen who could double qualify with a win and put Crews into his 14th Classic. It was somewhat of a longshot, and Crews’ chances decreased after Day 1.
“I’ve been paying attention to the EQ the second I knew I was the first-man out of the Classic,” he said. “After the first day, there was only two in the top 20. I was like two out of 20 isn’t great odds.”
He was much more optimistic when Wagner, starting eighth, and fellow Elite rookie Paul Marks, who stood 34th, “smashed them” on Day 2. Marks’ 23-11 put him third while Wagner’s 23-9 gave him a 2-ounce lead on Matt Messer.
“OK, I like the way this is looking,” Crews said. “My guess is one of the two is going to smash them again.”
Crews watched every minute of Championship Saturday on Bassmaster LIVE, where Messer looked to have the upper hand.
“Messer was on them,” Crews said. “He was dialed in, but he never caught one of those 5-pluses. If he did, it was a done deal. That gave me some hope.”
The anglers had another hour to fish after LIVE coverage ended, so Crews didn’t see Wagner’s late cull. Crews received a hint when tournament director Hank Weldon and emcee Thom Abraham discussed how a tie would be broken with a fishoff.
“They don’t talk about that unless they know it’s going to be close,” Crews said. “I didn’t think it was going to be close, so that gave me a glimmer of hope.”
Messer, the Day 1 leader with 23-9, weighed 22-12 for a 68-5 total. As Abraham announced Wagner needed 22-11, Crews caught a glimpse of his bag as it lay on the scale.
“When I physically saw the bag, I knew he had a good chance,” Crews said. “Over time, watching somebody take their bag from one tank to another, and seeing it for three seconds out of the water, you can guess it within a pound.”
On his video, Crews pepped up in anticipation, optimistic that Wagner might just have enough.
“C’mon sack. C’mon sack,” he said. “It’s a bag, son. Hurry up, Hank. Put ‘em on there.”
When Wagner’s fish tipped the scales at 23-7, he won with 69-2, 13 ounces better than Messer. Although 12 hours away, Crews celebrated as much if not more than Wagner. He raised his arm in celebration and shook the house by bellowing “Yes! Oh my God, yes.” Alerted to the commotion, Crews’ dog jumped up on his armchair.
“Wooo! Lola, yes, yes,” and his daughter, Ivy, can be heard asking what happened before popping out of her room for a congratulatory hug. Looking at his camera, Crews stuck his tongue out in pure joy and raised his fist in triumph again.
“Stressful,” he agreed, “and it was even a little more emotional than I thought it would be.
Watch John Crews learning he’s in the 2026 Classic.
“After the third day at La Crosse, I didn’t look at points until after I was done fighting. Looking how close it was, I was conjuring up all kinds of emotions. If somebody bumps me in, I’m going to have a release of those emotions.”
Over the years, this exact scenario has occurred numerous times, and the beneficiary usually rewards his benefactor. A thank you call was first in order.
“I talked to Emil yesterday for a while,” Crews said. “He was driving to another tournament. We talked through a few different things. I’m going to take him and all his roommates out to dinner at the Classic. I’m going to do something else for him, but I’m going to keep that a secret until then.”
The third Knoxville Classic will be held March 13-15. Crews, the Elite Series ironman, posted a 10th-place finish in the 2021 Elite there in late February. He would like to improve on his Classic-best sixth place in the 2020 Guntersville Classic.
“I’m glad we’re going to be there in March. Last time it was more of a winter bite,” he said. “I like those kind of fisheries in a prespawn environment. A lot of it has to do with what kind of patterns you get on and how much you sync up with the lake at that time, that’s the key.”
Wisconsin’s Kyle Norsetter is next in line at 45th in AOY. He’ll be closely monitoring the Wheeler Lake EQ, Oct. 2-4, hoping for a double qualifier that will get him to his second Classic.
