CORNELIUS, N.C. — Talented college fishing teams from across the country will converge on Lake Norman March 25-26, 2022 for the second stop on the Strike King Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops circuit.
Located in the western part of the state, the Catawba River reservoir holds both largemouth and spotted bass, and Bassmaster Elite Series pro Shane LeHew of Catawba, N.C., said he expects both species to play.
“The bass usually bed there around the end of March,” LeHew said. “So, there’s a chance they could be arriving at just the right time for a shallow-water event. That could mean bigger weights than usual.”
The normal pool for Lake Norman is close to 100 feet, but LeHew said the lake has been down over the winter, but it’s back to 96.8 feet now.
Shallow-water success, according to LeHew, will be found fishing shallow-running crankbaits and jigs around rocky banks, docks and some boat ramps that are in the water, while some deep-water success could be found around rock and brushpiles in 17 to 45 feet of water with Ned rigs, spoons and finesse jigs.
The larger fish in Lake Norman tend to live shallower, LeHew said, while schools of smaller spotted bass can be caught in deeper water.
The last College Series event held on Lake Norman in 2019 was won by the Jacksonville State University duo of William Nichols and Jamon Phillips, who weighed in 37 pounds, 15 ounces during the three-day event in late February.
The 2022 Strike King Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops season will feature four two-day regular-season events with the full field fishing both days of the competition. Teams will launch Friday and Saturday at 7:10 a.m. ET from Blythe Landing in Huntersville, N.C., with weigh-in back at Blythe Landing starting at 3:30 p.m.
Full coverage will be available on Bassmaster.com.
The tournament is being hosted by Visit Lake Norman, Visit Charlotte and Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation.