BUCHANAN, Tenn. — When Kansas State University anglers Kyle Alsop and Taylor Bivins were fishing on Clinton Lake in the Carhartt Midwestern Regional qualifying tournament, they knew it could be their last chance to represent the Wildcats bass fishing team.
They finished sixth, though, which qualified them for the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship, which they won on July 30 on Green River Lake in Kentucky. That win earned them entry into yet another tournament – this time the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Classic Bracket presented by Bass Pro Shops here on Kentucky and Barkley lakes.
Both anglers are hoping for “one more tournament” after this one, namely the 2017 Geico Bassmaster Classic. The winner in this eight-man field will advance to fish in next year’s Classic, where a chance at glory and a huge paycheck could await.
But first things first, and that means emerging victorious in the head-to-head Classic Bracket, which began with a 5:45 a.m. launch this morning at Paris Landing State Park in Buchanan, Tenn.
Both anglers from the top four teams at the college national championship advanced to fish in the bracket challenge: Alsop and Bivins of Kansas State, Brian Pahl and John Garrett of nearby Bethel University, Sam Stone and Evan Coleman of Texas State, and Austin Handley and Caleb Wozniak of Auburn. The anglers are seeded 1-8 and will square off in bracket play, and only the man with the heaviest bag in each pairing will advance to fish Friday.
They’ll continue to face daily single elimination until one champion is crowned Saturday, and Alsop and Bivins said they desperately want to win. And if they don’t, then they’re cheering for the teammate that helped get them here in the first place.
“It all started on Clinton Lake, and we did think that would be our last tournament,” Bivins said before Thursday’s launch. “And then we just kept moving forward. Now, the Bassmaster Classic could be my last tournament representing K-State. The plan is just to put five in the boat. Usually, you’re used to working with your partner to get five in the boat. But by yourself, if you can do that, I think you have a good shot of beating the next guy and advancing.”
Bivins, is the No. 2 seed in the Classic Bracket, and he’ll fish head-to head against Handley. Alsop is the top seed and will compete against Wozniak. No. 3 Pahl will face No. 6 Coleman, and No. 4 Garrett will face No. 5 Stone.
Alsop said fishing in head-to-head format completely changes the way he approaches a typical tournament.
“Taylor and I talked about that last night,” Alsop said. “It’s different than any other tournament. You can’t let up on them. If you’re crushing them, you have to keep catching. You might not get to come back tomorrow if you’re leaving fish out there. You swing for the fences every day and hope for the best.”
Pahl said his familiarity with Kentucky and Barkley lakes could help him and Garrett. They fish here often, as Bethel University is only a couple dozen miles from the launch at Paris Landing. Still, he said the bodies of water are producing mixed results right now, and patterns have been a bit difficult to establish in practice.
“It’s fishing pretty tough right now, so anything can happen,” Pahl said. “We could easily go out and have 15 pounds, or it could be 10 pounds. People are finding fish deep right now, there are some schools. If you want to fish your strength (no matter what it is,) you could do well here.”
Garrett said momentum is important in fishing, and in the head-to-head game in particular, mind games can come into play.
“You go for the throat everyday,” he said. “There is a mind game. You’re always thinking about it. You pull up on some fish, do you leave them for tomorrow, or do you try to get them all.”
Still, he said even though he’s fishing alone on Thursday, he has a silent partner in Boat No. 3 — his Bethel teammate, Pahl.
“We found some fish on some shallow bars…and we’ll start there and hopefully go there first,” Garrett said. “Then we’ll go out when the sun comes up. We shared all our stuff. All the fish he found, I know about. And all the fish I found, he knows about.”
The eight College Bracket anglers launched first at Paris Landing, and were followed by the nearly 200 teams competing in the Costa Bassmaster High School National Championship. Rain storms were moving into west Tennessee by daybreak, which could have an affect on today’s action on the water.
Day 1 weigh-in for both events is set for 1:45 p.m. at Paris Landing State Park in Buchanan, Tenn.